• ---------- Forwarded message ----------
    From: Christopher Profeta <profetc@gpschools.org>
    Date: Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 9:51 AM
    Subject: Re: Bond ratings
    To: Judy Gafa <GafaJ@gpschools.org>
    Cc: School Board <Schoolboard@gpschools.org>

    Judy,

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts.  I share your support for our administrative team at 389, and I had some other concerns too.  First, when I ran for this position I spent a lot of time talking to people about the importance of working together as a community.  We don't always agree, and sometimes things may get heated, all of that is a normal part of the process.  But public name calling should not become the norm.  Also,the information being used is inaccurate.  I recall that in 2013 when the bond rating was downgraded it was widely covered in the media.  I do not recall any such reports in January of 2017.  Often times it seems the most outrageous statements get the most attention regardless of whether they are correct or not.  We need to be careful of letting our district be run that way.

     

    I will say, I am personally proud of the work that all seven board members did in partnership with the administration and the community to pass a balanced budget that, while it wasn't perfect (no budget ever is), reflected a true compromise among us all and did not, in my view at least, negatively impact the quality of education we offer our students in Grosse Pointe.  I am also proud of the most recent audit results that showed us better off than we anticipated by over half a million dollars in part because we were under budget in our General Fund.  I give Mrs. Abbey and her department credit for that.  

     

    I am confident that as we go into this next budget discussion we can keep working together to get good information out to the community, to listen and respond to them in a positive way, and to maintain their trust.

     

    Chris Profeta

    Any opinions expressed in the above email are the personal opinions of the sender and not those of the other members of the Board and/or the Grosse Pointe Public School System.

    On Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 8:36 AM, Judy Gafa <GafaJ@gpschools.org> wrote:

     

    ---------- Forwarded message ---------
    From: Judy Gafa <GafaJ@gpschools.org>
    Date: Fri, Dec 1, 2017 at 8:24 AM
    Subject: Re: Bond ratings
    To: Gary Niehaus <niehaug@gpschools.org>
    CC: <jminnis@grossepointemagazine.com>, <jminnis@gpnews.com>

    As treasurer of the board I fully support Dr Niehaus and clearly our bond rating has not changed since 2013, as evidenced by the multiple attached documents.

    I was so impressed last year when the Grosse Pointe News editorial board decided to fact check letters before printing.  

    I’d also point out that Dr Dean is Deputy Superintendent of Education Services.  Under his tenure the district has hired leaders like Kate Murray, Moussa Hamka, Roy Bishop, Sara Delgado, Shelly Ann Keelan, Hussien Ali, Cynthia Parravano, Rodger Hunwick, Michelle Davis, to name just a few. Many of these leaders were promoted from within after under going a rigorous screening and interview process, that includes other administrators, parents and staff.

    I can only speak for myself and I sincerely hope my fellow board members weigh in, but with the number of staff who present at educational conferences, 2 Blue Ribbon schools in the last 2 years and students who excel, I would hardly use the term turkey to describe the hard work that goes on in this district on a daily basis

    Respectfully

    Judy Gafa

     

    On Thu, Nov 30, 2017 at 4:56 PM Gary Niehaus <niehaug@gpschools.org> wrote:

    ​

    Ratings.pdf

    ​​

    bond ratings

    ​

    John,

     

    Laura Cllays is our Plante Moran auditor.  She confirmed in her email that the Aa3 rating has not changed.  The Moody website (Laura's attachment) has a GPPSS website with the Aa3 rating for January 2017.  This is the same rating that we have had since 2013.

     

    The S-P Rating is AA- and was down graded from AA in 2013 like Moody's.  If you look at the State of Michigan, the bond ratings were down graded as a state and school districts were down graded along with the State of Michigan in 2013.

     

    Paul Stauder is the PFM Financial Adviser for GPPSS.  His report is detailed and shows that Moody's rating as Aa3 since 2013.  His contact information is on the attachment.  You can verify with him as well.

     

    I believe it is important that the rating information is corrected.  There was no rating down grade in January 2017.  Aa3 was and is our current Moody's rating.   You are considered a reliable source by the Grosse Pointe Communities and a correction would set the rating straight.  

     

    I still believe the "turkey" comment about Dr. Jon Dean and the rest of us at 389 is not the way to go either.  It is not the season nor the right time to take a shot at 389 when the information was not correct in the first place.  

     

    Please call me if you have any questions.

    Thanks,

    GCN

    ---------- Forwarded message ----------
    From: Laura Claeys <Laura.Claeys@plantemoran.com>
    Date: Thu, Nov 30, 2017 at 3:58 PM
    Subject: Bond ratings
    To: "Gary C. Niehaus (GPPSS)" <gary.niehaus@gpschools.org>, Gary Niehaus <niehaug@gpschools.org>


    Hi Gary

     

    Attached is a summary of the bond ratings for the district I pulled direct from Moody’s

     

    You will see the following:

     

    -          February 2007 – Aa2

    -          July 2014 – Aa3

    -          January 2017- Aa3

     

    The Aa2 rating goes back as far as 2002, so nothing of concern there.

     

    The definitions of the quality are attached.

     

    My comment would be:

     

    -          Ratings have been affected by enrollment declines and impact on fund balance (keep in mind the bond rating was done in January 2017 before seeing this year results).

    -          Continued reliance on the general fund to pay for capital items will have a possible downward impact on bond ratings as the fund balance will become even more compressed – but not sure what will be done.

    Hope this helps

    Laura

     

    Attachment1  Attachment2

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    Gary C. Niehaus

    Superintendent

    Grosse Pointe Public School System

    Our Vision: #OneGP - where everyone learns, every day  

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