Michigan Compiled Laws
Article I - State Aid to Public Schools, Early Childhood, and Adult Education (388.1601...388.1772)
Section 388.1623f - Learning Pod Pilot Program; Funding Prerequisites; Report; Definitions.

Sec. 23f.
(1) From the state school aid fund money appropriated in section 11, there is allocated for 2022-2023 only an amount not to exceed $5,000,000.00 for the learning pod pilot program as prescribed in this section.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, to receive funding under this section, subject to subsection (3), an intermediate district must apply for the funding in a form and manner prescribed by the department. In its application described in this subsection, an intermediate district must include the number of eligible children the intermediate district intends to serve through programs described in this section. The department shall allow an intermediate district to apply for funding under this section on a rolling basis, as funding is needed by the intermediate district. The department shall ensure that each intermediate district is given an opportunity to apply for funding under this section before it awards all of the funding under this section.
(3) To receive funding under this section, an intermediate district must do all of the following:
(a) It shall solicit feedback from the parents and legal guardians of eligible children concerning the types of programs that should be offered through learning pods as described in this section and it shall pledge to use this feedback to develop and implement learning pods during the summer of 2023.
(b) It shall aggregate a list of programs offered by the intermediate district or of districts located within the geographic boundaries of the intermediate district through learning pods during the summer of 2023 and the number of hours and the subjects available to eligible children enrolled in the intermediate district or districts located within the geographic boundaries of the intermediate district.
(c) It shall make the list described in subdivision (b) available to all of the parents and legal guardians of the eligible children enrolled in the intermediate district or districts located within the geographic boundaries of the intermediate district by not later than June 1, 2023.
(d) It shall provide the parents and legal guardians described in subdivision (c) a mechanism to choose a learning pod program from the list described in subdivision (b) and mechanism for enrolling their eligible child in a program on the list. A parent or legal guardian cannot enroll their eligible child in more than 2 programs as described in this subdivision.
(4) An intermediate district that receives funding under this section shall use the funding only for the coverage of costs associated with running learning pod programs described in this section, including, but not limited to, the provision of bonus payments to teachers and staff members who work in the learning pod programs.
(5) The department shall pay each intermediate district that has applied for funding under this section an equal amount for each eligible child enrolled in a learning pod program as described in subsection (3)(d).
(6) Each intermediate district that receives money under this section shall submit a report to the department concerning the number of eligible children served, the number of hours eligible children were provided programming through learning pods described in this section, and a brief description of how that time was utilized. The department shall compile the reports described in this subsection and submit 1 report based off of the compiled reports to the house fiscal agency, the senate fiscal agency, the state budget office, the house and senate subcommittees responsible for K to 12 school aid, and the house and senate subcommittees responsible for appropriations for the department.
(7) After learning pod programs, as described in this section, have concluded, each intermediate district that received funding under this section for the implementation of the programs shall provide a forum that allows the parents and legal guardians of eligible children who participated in the programs to provide feedback concerning the programs. This forum must include, at a minimum, the provision of surveys that solicit feedback, including the solicitation of feedback concerning how the programs could be improved. Intermediate districts shall provide results from surveys described in this subsection to the department, in a form and manner prescribed by the department and on a timeline determined by the department. The department shall compile the surveys it receives under this subsection and submit 1 report concerning the survey results to the house fiscal agency, the senate fiscal agency, the state budget office, the house and senate subcommittees responsible for K to 12 school aid, and the house and senate subcommittees responsible for appropriations for the department.
(8) Notwithstanding section 17b, the department shall make payments under this section on a schedule determined by the department.
(9) As used in this section:
(a) "Eligible child" or "eligible children" means a child or children to whom any of the following apply:
(i) The child is or children are economically disadvantaged, as reported to the center in the form and manner prescribed by the center, not later than the fifth Wednesday after the pupil membership count day of the immediately preceding fiscal year.
(ii) For a child or children for whom the results of the state summative assessment have been received, the child or the children did not achieve proficiency on the English language arts, mathematics, science, or social studies content area assessment.
(iii) The child or children are at risk of not meeting the core academic curricular objectives in English language arts or mathematics, as demonstrated on local assessments.
(b) "Learning pod" means a group of eligible children participating together in a summer program designed to provide learning enrichment opportunities, academic supports that help students catch up with their peers, and classroom experiences designed to prevent or reduce summer learning loss.
(c) "Summer" means a period beginning June 1 and ending September 2 of the same year.
History: Add. 2022, Act 144, Eff. Oct. 1, 2022

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