For Count Day in Michigan this year, Detroit schools offering prizes for attendance
LANSING, Mich. - The all-important Count Day in Michigan has arrived with a reworked algorithm for determining how much money school districts can receive for the following year.
Under traditional circumstances, districts count their pupils in October and February. However, the pandemic has upended that schedule and reworked the weight each day's count has on the total funding that gets allocated.
Students will either need to be in the classroom or attending lessons virtually to be counted.
Under a new formula created by the Michigan Department of Education, 75% of funds will be determined by last year's count and 25% by this year's student count.
Normally, it's 90% of this year's count and 10% of the previous year's count.
This year presents its own brand of challenges to districts with the element of virtual learning proving to be a barrier for some who need to be attending school.
In Detroit, the public school district is offering special incentives to students who attend on count day and continue to do so through March 2. The prices include Special teams backgrounds for all students in class Feb. 10 and free food vouchers for the school with the most improved attendance during the week of Feb. 10 - 23.
There's also a grand prize for students who could win one of 10 new gaming consoles. Students will need to attend all of their classes at least once to be eligible but can increase their odds by attending all scheduled classes all 10 days.