Hi George - I'm in the office today until 2. I just spoke to Jack. He shared with me your message about push back from trustees on the financial elements in the packet. I wanted to share with you some of my thinking on this. (please forward this to Glenn if you think it will help)

1. They asked for these projections; you were responding to a request.
2. You are putting forward conservative projections based on input from Business Services.
3. It is up to Glenn, at this point, to interpret the projections, to make meaning out of them, to help you allay the concerns of other trustees, and to speak publicly to them Wednesday.
4. To a large extent, I believe the projections on the charts show what will happen if we don't implement some major changes and if the state financial picture does not improve. Glenn can do a great job speaking to both of these "ifs" and showing how the lines will come together. You have outlined the changes.
5. What happens to this financial picture with and without the bond? This is the critical piece. We can demonstrate that it is BETTER financially with the bond, WORSE without. That's really all that needs to be said.
6. At this point, I think Glenn should be in the $ seat. Orma has had her say.

The other thing I recommend is to take the reaction from the 1, 2, or 3 trustees you've had and pick them off one at a time. Don't assume this is an issue for all trustees. I think that Glenn (or in some cases Jack, let's say for Kathy) can respond to the concerns and proactively deal with the rest.

Hear's the talking point: This is a challenging time for school districts in Michigan. We are in much better shape than other districts because our financial house is in order. We have major fund equity; we have an exceptionally high credit rating, proof that the financial markets see us as good money managers; we are not in reactive mode as are most other districts right now; we have opportunity to reshape our financial future; the bond is part of the plan; it will alleviate some of the current pressures on our operating budget and create real revenue/market share gains.

By the way - I don't think this needs to get big in public unless Ann S. gets ahold of it. I know she has the packet, but I think if we are ready to respond to her with the talking point above, to send her to Glenn, to forbid Orma from talking to her, etc. we will be fine.

Last thought - it makes sense to me that trustees are freaking out about the budget, the achievement gap/fairness to the black community, etc. This is a huge, huge step they are taking. Thank god they are freaking out in private with you. I think they can pull themselves together, with our help, by Wednesday.

Stay tuned for a script for Wednesday for you and Gerry that, along with videos, I think addresses the plan we made yesterday.

Hang in there!! - peter

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