Education

Federal funds help expand dental care for children

By |

By BECKY McKENDRY
Capital News Service
LANSING – Smiles in Michigan will soon be a little brighter – and healthier – thanks to a recent federal grant. The Department of Community Health will use a $1.3 million grant to expand oral health programs in Mecosta and Genesee counties. The grant is from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration. In Mecosta County, the funds will expand the SEAL! Michigan program that places hygiene students in elementary and middle schools to provide sealants and dental education.

Education

Lawmaker presses for easier recall of ISD board members

By |

By CELESTE BOTT
Capital News Service
LANSING – A financial scandal in the Genesee Intermediate School District (ISD) has reopened a broader political discussion about the recall of ISD board members. A recent forensic audit report by Southfield-based Plante Moran revealed that tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars were misused for district administrators’ personal expenses. The State Police is conducting a criminal investigation. The ISD board unanimously voted to terminate one administrator after Superintendent Lisa Hagel filed charges calling for her dismissal, claiming “a misuse of public funds through travel, inaccurate records, misuse of ISD equipment, directing inflation of an invoice and falsifying records.”

Sen. John Gleason, D-Flushing, said that the members of the Intermediate School District board must also be held accountable. “As of right now, there’s no avenue to recall that board, even if they have failed to do their jobs,” Gleason said.