LANSING—High rates of poverty, low graduation numbers and high unemployment combine to make it difficult to attain a college education.

But now, those three factors are prerequisites for a city to be “promised” a new strategy intended to improve secondary education, cut unemployment and provide a chance for college to children who may have never considered it.

A commission chaired by Lt. Gov. John Cherry on higher education and economic growth proposed the “Michigan Promise,” which provides a $4,000 college scholarship for any Michigan student who meets certain requirements.

Gov. Jennifer Granholm said, “It's an amazing opportunity for our students and a critical necessity for our economy."

Now, under newly proposed legislation in both the House and Senate, that promise could extend beyond students and focus on their communities.

The bipartisan legislation would authorize “Michigan Promise Zones” in cities that meet the criteria: high unemployment, underperforming schools and high levels of poverty.

The plan is modeled after the Kalamazoo Promise, which provides a free college education to any student who attends Kalamazoo public schools from kindergarten through grade 12 and graduates. Even students who attend just four years of high school there while maintaining a C average can have 65 percent of their college costs paid for.

The major difference between the Kalamazoo Promise and the proposed zones is funding: Kalamazoo’s project was paid for entirely by private donations, while the promise zones would be funded by both private contributions and state educational funds derived from tax revenues.

The bill’s primary sponsor, Sen. Gerald Van Woerkom, R-Norton Shores, chairs the Senate Education Committee and said the legislation would “open up doors to higher education.

“The program will help students attend college who may have been unable to afford it otherwise. It will also increase local school district enrollments and boost community tax bases as families move into districts to take advantage of the scholarship’s opportunity,” he said.

Iris Salters, president of the Michigan Education Association, said the MEA hasn’t taken a position on the legislation but expressed concerns about how the zones would be paid for.

“It’s taking a shrinking pool of money and dividing it up differently, and then that money isn’t being replaced,” Salters said. “Helping kids go to college is laudable, but nobody’s talking about the fact that we don’t have enough money to fund the programming we have right now.”

Salters said she appreciates the state’s efforts to simultaneously improve education and economics in areas that are suffering—but said the Kalamazoo initiative was much different.

“If you look at the Kalamazoo Promise, that’s an independently funded program that’s built the economic base of Kalamazoo considerably,” Salters said. “I believe education depends on the economy and the economy depends on education.

“But you don’t bolster one at the expense of another.”

Kalamazoo has, in fact, seen an economic upswing since its program went into effect. The district enrolled 900 new students this year, the largest increase in any Michigan district. In addition, property values have increased by more than 10 percent since the program was launched in 2005.

Granholm has made it clear that improving one weakness will improve others.

"The evidence is clear: The states with the highest education levels have the most thriving economies and lowest unemployment rates.”

Michael Boulus, executive director of the Presidents Council, State Universities of Michigan, agreed.

“Any time you increase the number of college graduates, you raise the issue of a better economic return for Michigan,” Boulus said. “In the workplace, talent rules, and I think across the globe, countries are recognizing that human capital is crucial.

“The state with the most talent wins.”

Boulus agreed with Salters, however, that despite good intentions, the legislation might be difficult to implement.

“If you can duplicate the Kalamazoo Promise throughout Michigan and make these promise zones, that would be great—but obviously, they’re different,” Boulus said. “This would be pretty complicated to create, and I really think there are better ways of doing this.”

Boulus suggested a state income tax fund to repay student loan debts as one alternative.

The reason some skeptics think the promise zones would be hard to implement is because, unlike in Kalamazoo, a chunk of the funding would come from state taxes. Granholm made it clear, however, that the state can only do so much—the heavy lifting would have to be done by local communities with the help of private donations.

The legislation doesn’t specify exact details of how the funding will be divided.

Co-sponsors include Reps. Tim Merton, D-Auburn Hills; Bert Johnson, D-Detroit; and Chris Ward, R-Brighton, and Sens. Randy Richardville, R-Monroe; Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing; and Buzz Thomas, D-Detroit.

The bills are currently before the House and Senate Education committees.