Pontiac School Plan OK’d

Michigan education officials last Thursday approved the Pontiac School District’s deficit elimination plan, removing the threat of a state takeover and prompting the release of $2.8 million of overdue state aid that had been withheld in April and May.

Michigan Department of Education superintendent Mike Flanagan said he would not recommend that a state team review the district’s finances. The decision came after the district implemented a series of cuts, including closing two schools.

The state had withheld two months of state aid because it said the district was not meeting the goals of its deficit elimination plan. Last week, the district board approved an amended plan, and the state later signed off.

State officials in early May launched an investigation into the district’s finances, the first step toward a possible state takeover.

The district is located in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac, a city that is already under state-controlled emergency management.

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Michigan
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