West Bloomfield Schools Need To Be on Par with the Rest of the State.
We are organizing concerned residents to educate their neighbors, improve public policy at the local level, and fix our schools. Are you in?
West Bloomfield's Educational Failures: By the numbers
The share of West Bloomfield School District's entire general fund budget that depends on a voter-approved tax renewal. The district's own website states plainly that without it, the district would need to cut 17% of its budget to stay structurally balanced. That renewal has to come back to voters every 10 years. One low-turnout election could trigger a crisis.
The math proficiency rate at West Bloomfield Middle School, exactly equal to the Michigan state average. In one of Oakland County's wealthiest communities, middle school students are performing at the same level as the state as a whole. West Bloomfield families are paying well above average in property taxes. Middle school outcomes should reflect that.
That is what West Bloomfield spends per student each year across a $98 million annual budget. Only 38% of students are proficient in math and 48% in reading, numbers that barely clear the state average. A community with this level of investment should be producing results well above the state average, not hovering just above it.
That is Michigan's college and career readiness rate, ranking 30th in the nation. Nearly 3 out of 4 Michigan high school graduates are not considered ready for college or the workforce. West Bloomfield graduates enter a state economy and higher education system shaped by this broader failure, regardless of how good their local district is.
What's Driving It
Policy Failures
A Budget Built on a Foundation That Requires Voter Renewal Every Decade
West Bloomfield School District relies on a voter-approved tax for 17% of its operating budget, a structure created when Proposal A passed in 1994 and froze certain districts into a two-tier funding system. Thirty years later, the district still depends on that recurring vote just to maintain current spending levels. If voters say no, the district faces immediate cuts of nearly one fifth of its budget with no state backstop. That is not responsible for long-term fiscal planning. It is a structural vulnerability baked into state law and never fixed.
Spending Above Average, Performing at Average
West Bloomfield spends $15,378 per student, well above the Michigan average, yet produces math proficiency of 38% and reading proficiency of 48%, results that only marginally exceed state norms. For a community with West Bloomfield's demographics and tax base, performing at the state average is not the standard families should accept. The district has the resources to produce top-tier outcomes. The gap between what is being spent and what is being achieved deserves a direct, public accounting.
Michigan's Pension Burden Is Reaching Into Every Classroom
Michigan's teacher pension system has been chronically underfunded for decades, and the state has increasingly shifted the cost of that debt onto local school districts. For West Bloomfield, that means a growing share of its $98 million budget goes toward retirement obligations rather than instruction, curriculum, or student support. The state once covered essentially the full cost of teacher pensions. Now districts absorb a significant and growing share, silently compressing what is available for the students in classrooms today.
We Need Leaders Like You
Communities like yours need leaders that are willing to step up to make Michigan schools work.
Education
Learn how the city council functions, how to speak at community events and to board members directly.
Connection
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Action
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Support
Ongoing help from experienced community advocates who've successfully driven change across West Bloomfield and other parts of Michigan.
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