Dearest reader,
This one has been quietly taking quite a bit of work behind the scenes.
Lady B's new website now has FOUR searchable statewide school databases.
No downloading giant Excel files.
No hunting through state websites.
No figuring out which column means what.
No spreadsheets required.
Just choose the database, search your school district, and read the receipts.
https://ladybudgetdown.com/home/
📚 SCHOOL FINANCIALS & STAFFING
Lady B's Statewide District Ledger. Compare district spending and staffing from 2014-15 to 2024-25, including instruction, administration, operations, teachers, aides, support staff and more.
🧸 EARLY CHILDHOOD
Search district-level early childhood programs and compare 2014-15 with 2024-25. See programs reported, children served and percentages, with suppressed state data preserved exactly as reported.
⏰ SHARED TIME
Search 12 years of Shared Time data, from 2014-15 through 2025-26. See regular enrollment alongside Shared Time FTE and headcount, including nonpublic and homeschool participation.
👩�🏫 REP STAFFING
Compare district staffing reported through Michigan's Registry of Educational Personnel from 2014-15 to 2024-25. Teachers. Instructional aides. Administrators. Student support. School support. And much more.
Why these databases?
Because these are questions readers have been asking.
Lady B receives the messages. I read the comments. I see the rabbit holes people want to explore.
Much of this information is technically public already. But "public" and "easily accessible to the public" are two very different things. So, Lady B is taking statewide data and putting it in one place where an ordinary parent, teacher, taxpayer or board member can actually search it.
And this is only the beginning.
More searchable databases are planned as time and finances allow.
Lady B is many things, dear reader. A web designer and PHP/SQL expert are decidedly not among them. 😂 The technical work required to build and maintain these tools is work Lady B pays someone to do. Hosting, development and the other expenses behind this project are real, and reader support is what allows Lady B to keep expanding it.
If these tools save you time, help you understand your district, or send you down a rabbit hole of your own, please consider supporting Lady B.
The goal has never been to keep the receipts in Lady B's ledger.
The goal is to put them in yours.
With receipts and respect.
#LadyBudgetdown #MichiganSchools #PublicEducation #SchoolFinance #SchoolTransparency #PublicRecords #MichiganEducation #SchoolData #WithReceiptsAndRespect