Education Finance

Education is a public good. In Michigan, we come together to support our young people from cradle to career. At EPIC, we believe that our leaders should know how these investments are working and what changes are needed to achieve the outcomes our students deserve.

Concerns over K-12 funding are well-founded. Education is the second largest area of the state budget and K-12 resources are strongly linked with student outcomes. Michigan systems of education finance are complex, but present opportunities to serve students and educators to help them thrive.

In the Conversation

EPIC Answers the Most Pressing Education Finance Questions

Education Finance, In the Conversation

These FAQs provide a basic introduction to how weighted student funding works, how it differs from Michigan’s current approach, and how other states use it.

Michigan’s school funding system is overdue for a smart update

Education Finance, In the Conversation, Media

Since Proposal A passed in 1994, classrooms — and the students in them — have changed dramatically. Yet the system directing billions of taxpayer dollars each year has not kept pace with those changes.

Latest Research

Funding Michigan’s Future: Three Decades of School Finance and the Policy Questions Ahead

This report takes stock of three decades of Michigan school finance to clarify how revenues and expenditures have changed — and what that means for students.

Teacher Compensation: Recent Trends and Public Opinion, 2025 Update

Teacher salaries in Michigan have risen slightly in recent years but continue to lag behind those in other states. This report aims to help stakeholders determine whether to maintain the current approach or take more intentional steps to improve teacher compensation.

Teacher Compensation in Michigan: Recent Trends and Public Opinion

This report provides an overview of recent trends in teacher compensation and the current state of teacher compensation in Michigan.

Key Findings from Funding Michigan’s Future

What you need to know about three decades of Michigan school finance to clarify how revenues and expenditures have changed – and what that means for students.

More Key Findings

What’s Happening at EPIC?

Teacher Compensation in Michigan: Recent Trends and Public Opinion, 2026

EPIC Reports, EPIC Reports - Teacher Workforce, Feature - Teacher Workforce, Teacher Workforce

This report is EPIC’s third annual report on teacher compensation in Michigan. Given the recruitment and retention challenges Michigan has faced in recent years, understanding the state of teacher compensation has real consequences for students across the state.

Pre-Service Penalties: Tuition, Time, and Workload Costs for Aspiring Teachers

EPIC Policy Briefs, EPIC Policy Briefs - Teacher Workforce, Feature - Teacher Workforce, Teacher Workforce

EPIC’s newest brief uses multiple data sources and analytical methods to examine how future teachers’ college tuition, course-taking, time, and workload costs compare to those of their non-teacher peers.

EPIC Hosts First Research with Consequence Forum

Events, Feature - RBG3, Presentations, Presentations - RBG3, Read by Grade Three

The Education Policy Innovation Collaborative (EPIC) hosted its first-ever Research with Consequence Forum on June 25, 2026, at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing.

Examining Implementation of the West Michigan Teacher Collaborative: A Grow Your Own Initiative

EPIC Reports, EPIC Reports - Teacher Workforce, Feature - Teacher Workforce, Teacher Workforce

Our new report highlights a community-based program which is showing early success, the West Michigan Teacher Collaborative. Findings highlight both the potential and the complexity of building community-based teacher pipelines.