Stimulus money brings improvements to county
By Pat Maurer
Review Correspondent
Despite pouring millions into the area, the Americans Recovery and Reinvestment Act appears to be bringing only a few “real” jobs into Clare County so far, although 20,000 Summer Youth Program jobs were funded by ARRA funds through the Michigan Works! System.
With a current unemployment level of 17.3 percent according to October statistics, Clare County desperately needs jobs.
Michigan continues to top all 50 states with an unemployment rate in October of 15.1 percent, slightly down from a September high of 15.3 percent.
According to the Detroit Free press website, 5,000 ARRA awards were made in Michigan for a total of $5.2 billion and an estimated 22,513 jobs were retained or created.
Statewide the Michigan Department of Transportation is the recipient of $566.9 million in stimulus funds. Clare County is receiving $3.35 million of that total for two projects, the new 44,000 square foot Clare County Transit facility and the recently completed 5.5 mile portion of the Peré Marquette Rail trail through Farwell.
Janet Foran of MDOT’s Office of Communications said “The stimulus funding calculation for jobs created is one job for each $92,000 invested, making, if the calculation is accurate, three hundred sixty-four jobs created or saved by the investment.
[See related MDOT projects article]
The Michigan Department of Education received the second highest stimulus grant Statewide at $508.7 million; $133.89 million is earmarked for the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Human Services will get $107.7 million.
Grants through the Michigan Department of Education or “Stabilization grants” to Clare County Schools are misleading, said Clare Business Manager Lynn Graham.
“ARRA Stabilization money is replacing some of our State Aid money,” Graham said. She said the Stabilization funds are different from ARRA. Of the $568,100 grant listed, Graham said the district has received $425,737 so far, with the same amount deducted from the State Foundation grant. “We have to request it,” Graham said and justify jobs that are being retained by the funds.” “Basically it is taken away from the State Aid and given back through the ARRA Stabilization funds.”
She said without the funds, the district would have lost 23 jobs for the April through June part of last year, or 4.73 FTE [full time equivalent] high school and middle school positions over the entire school year. “We will be doing the same game for the next three years – replacing State Aid with stimulus funds,” she said, “and Farwell and Harrison schools are facing the same thing.”
Farwell’s total, according to The Detroit Free Press online, is $570,933. Harrison Stabilization funds are $615,775.
Graham said all State School Districts are losing State Aid and gaining stimulus funds to replace them. She added that other ARRA or stimulus funds were “additional funds” and would fund special education programs in the county.
Graham did outline Title I stimulus funds totaling $223,977, which will create some jobs in all three buildings. $75,963 in the Primary School will fund a school nurse and social worker as well as add parent involvement activities. In the Middle School $27,239 will fund parent involvement activities and pay for an instruction assistant for at-risk students. At Pioneer High School, $111,384 will fund paraprofessional assistance, supolement5al learning materials, online learning software, technology equipment and supplies and parent involvement activities.
A total of $374,591 will fund special education salaries and benefits, technology equipment and supplies, staff professional development and other costs through the Clare-Gladwin RESD.
County Schools will also receive ARRA funds through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act said Clare Gladwin Regional Education Service District Business Manager Tammy Chaffee. The total award is $2,045,058 to be “passed through to five local School districts and one Public School Academy based on population and will be used to pay for special education teacher salaries and benefits, professional development and technology items to improve student achievement.”
Clare Schools will receive $375,883, Farwell will get $377,758 and Harrison’s award is $407,427. Beaverton Rural Schools’ award is $340,534, Gladwin Community Schools total is $484,427 and the Creative Learning Academy will get $14,457.
“This money will create or save approximately 20 jobs within Clare and Gladwin Counties,” Chaffee reported. She said $37,485 would be retained by the RESD for “assistive technology items to improve instruction for hearing and visually impaired students and for a consultant to improve writing and alternative communication services for Clare-Gladwin RESD Area School students.
Chaffee said the RESD also received two additional ARRA grants: ARRA Preschool $34,071 and ARRA Early On $80,373.
“The Preschool grant will provide software, supplies and teaching assistance in the classroom and additional occupational therapy and speech services to pre-school students.” Chaffee reported. “the Early On grant is providing evaluation services and materials, professional training for staff and a social, emotional service provision pilot program for area families with infants with qualifying disabilities.”
Mid Michigan Community College was also awarded $31,458 in stimulus funds, which allowed the college to hire student workers through the work study program, said President Carol Churchill. The said the additional funds “equaled four full time equivalent jobs for the ongoing program.” She said stimulus funds also provided 14 summer workers through Michigan Works [Region 7-B] for both the Harrison and Mt. Pleasant campuses. Nine were from Clare County and five from Isabella County, she said.
Region 7B Consortium was listed on the Detroit Free Press website for ARRA funds totaling $2,904,997.
Michigan Works!, part of Region 7B, serves Arenac, Clare, Gladwin, Iosco, Ogemaw and Roscommon Counties through four basic services for job seekers: Work to Work, Unemployment to Work, Welfare to Work and School to Career. They also provide tuition assistance for college classes under Governor Jennifer Granholm’s No Worker Left Behind Program.
Ten percent of the total stimulus grant is earmarked for administration. Ninety percent is for program costs, to staff offices assist clients and provide training services, said Kelli Nicholas, Marketing Coordinator Michigan Works! Region 7B Consortium, at the Harrison office.
According to Nicholas, “The intent of our Recovery dollars is to help people find a job or provide training. Currently in our six counties, 467 people are in training.”
Over the past several months, approximately 299 youth gained workplace skills working in 97 sites in the six-county area for Michigan Works! Region 7B Consortium. [See related article].
Over 53 people were employed in the Clare County Summer Employment Youth Program at 18 worksites including MMCC, the Road Commission, Mid Michigan Community Action Agency and in the Harrison area.
Stimulus funds earmarked for Mid Michigan Community Action Agency services will total $9.5 million over the next three years said Executive Director Jill Sutton.
She said the funds will be used in the six county area that MMCAA serves – Clare, Bay, Gladwin, Mecosta, Midland and Osceola Counties.
A Weatherization program will be funded with $7.6 million in the six-county area over the three year period and approximately $260,000 will be used for a Homeless program in Clare and Gladwin Counties over a two-year period. The program is for “Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-housing,” she said.
A six-county Community Service Block Grant for $1.2 million will expand emergency services including funds for heat, utilities, medical, dental and employment support to help put clients back to work.
Stimulus funds totaling $100,000 will be used for classroom improvements and wages in five counties for the Early Head Start program, Sutton said. She added that $74,000 in stimulus money would fund classroom improvements, staff training and wages for the Head Start Program in three of the six counties.
The Emergency Food and Shelter Program in Clare County will also receive $13,000, Sutton said.
The stimulus funds will provide an additional 12 positions at MMCAA, eight in Clare County. She added that Weatherization in six counties will also add approximately 12 extra crew positions through contractors.
Sutton said MMCAA served 2,500 people in Clare County in 2008. “We hope to serve more in 2009,” she said. “That’s our goal.”
Some smaller grants in Clare County includes a $27,691 amount earmarked for crime fighting.
