BY JAKE NEHER
Michigan Public Radio Network
The Snyder administration said an education work group is not seriously discussing a voucher-like system for public schools. The Detroit News reported Friday that top aides to Governor Rick Snyder have been secretly meeting with private sector officials for months.
The report outlines a plan that would create so-called "value schools." They would cost five-thousand dollars a student every year, compared to around seven-thousand for traditional public schools.
Democrats and school union groups said the plan would amount to a voucher system, and would only serve to divert tax dollars to private corporations.
But Snyder administration spokesperson Kurt Weiss said it is just one of many ideas the group has heard.
"This was really early discussions. Nothing has been provided to the governor yet. So I think that reporting about vouchers was really inaccurate." Snyder said.
According to the Detroit News report, the group wanted to present a plan to the governor before he holds an education summit next week. But Weiss said the group has faced a number of "false starts."
Copyright 2013, MPRN