Gov. Rick Snyder proposes more money for Michigan schools in final State of the State

Gov. Rick Snyder hopes to send more money to schools around the state next year.

He announced during his eighth and final State of the State address Tuesday that his budget proposal will include “the largest increase in the basic per pupil student foundation allowance in the last 15 years.”

This proposal comes just a week after Amazon delivered a major rebuke to the state’s educational system.

The retail giant cited the poor state of schools and the lack of qualified professionals in the state when it eliminated both Detroit and Grand Rapids from consideration for the future home of its second headquarters.

Snyder, who will be forced from office by term limits at the end of the year, said he’s determined to use his final year in office to help improve education and to better prepare Michigan students for technology jobs.

“Let’s invest more in education,” he said.

The governor did not get into details about how the money should be spent. He made no mention of a major report that came out last week recommending a different way of distributing education dollars.

But in addition to promising more K-12 spending in his upcoming budget proposal to the legislature, Snyder said he’s also developing a “Marshall Plan for Talent.”

He did not provide details about that plan but said it “is going to lay the groundwork for a new way of producing talent in Michigan.”

The plan, he said, “is going to prepare Michigan students to invest in the future and to be ready for what comes next and to break down the walls that have traditionally existed between educational institutions and businesses.”

The state “learned some things” from its Amazon proposals, he said. “We can do better.”

Watch the full speech here: