Vote yes to bring Gratiot, Isabella to Midmichigan College district
On November 3rd, voters head to the polls to make important decisions about the future of our nation. Voters living in the Gratiot-isabella RESD (GI-RESD) will also be given the opportunity to vote on something that will have important local impacts — the propositions to annex the GI-RESD service area into Mid Michigan College’s (Mid) district.
For decades, Mid has had a site in Mt. Pleasant and has prepared thousands of skilled and caring students to go on to serve our manufacturing industries, our health care providers, and our businesses and offices. Thousands more Mid grads complete their general education requirements and transfer successfully to universities, saving themselves a lot of money. In fact, according to themost recent data from Mischooldata, Mid is the No. 1 college destination across the GI-RESD service area.
Though we can’t remember a time whenmid wasn’t an important part of these counties, the students who live here have paid 40% more in tuition costs than those who live in the Clare- Gladwin RESD, the College’s current in-district area. On November 3rd, we can change that. We can provide a better opportunity for all of our students to get a college degree by making it even more affordable. We can reduce the burden of student loans for these students, allowing them to buy homes in our neighborhoods faster, patronize our businesses more, and simply thrive more quickly. We can encourage more adults to return to get better training and a better job that provides better lives for their families.
All of us win in this equation, because all of us receive the benefits that come from highly skilled employees working in our region. We spend a lot of time talking about growing and keeping our own talent. Now we have a chance to actually encourage more of our kids and neighbors to train here, work here, and stay here. Mid’s impact on the mid-michigan region is already over $69 million annually. Additionally, Mid’s operations directly support 1 in every 43 jobs in the region. Increasing enrollment by lowering tuition will only increase Mid’s substantial economic impact, which directly translates into more revenue andmore jobs for our community.
Mid levies the second lowest millage rate amongmichigan’s community colleges, which means that the proposal only asks for support of 1.2232 mills on our property taxes. For most of us, that’s a matter of a few dollars a month — less than
$100 a year. In return, our students will save 40% onmid’s tuition, which translates to a collective savings of nearly $2 million in tuition per year. Much of this will go to support our local businesses. This is the sort of investment we’ll happily make for our community.
We encourage you to join us in voting yes on both of the annexation propositions for Mid Michigan College. Not only will annexation help stabilize the College’s revenue, therefore enhancing the quality of education and service we’ve come to expect, but it will provide our students a substantial, muchneeded tuition break and provide an economic spark to the region. Let’s help our communities grow stronger and smarter. For additional information, please visit midmich.edu/annexation. Vote yes on Mid Michigan College’s Propositions 1 and 2!