MyLeap director outlines FY2026 budget to expand pre-K, childcare scholarships and college aid

Dr. Beverly Walker Graffea, director of the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement and Potential (MyLeap), told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education and Community Colleges that the department’s FY2026 executive budget recommendation would continue existing programs and add new investments to expand early education and lower college costs.

MyLeap’s budget request includes funding to continue pre-K for all through the Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP), increased per-child allocations, larger scholarship funding for childcare, and an increase to the Michigan Achievement Scholarship, the director said. "Our mission is to improve outcomes from birth to post secondary so all people can succeed with a path to a high demand, high paying career right here in Michigan," Graffea said.

The nut graf: The proposal directs state general fund and School Aid Fund dollars, along with federal funds, to expand access to affordable childcare and to increase college affordability. Key items in the executive recommendation described at the hearing would affect thousands of families, early educators and college students statewide and include both ongoing and new investments.

Most important budget details presented

- The executive recommendation proposes $676,100,000 to continue pre-K through GSRP, including a $392 increase per child to $10,577 per student and $25,000,000 in startup grants to attract new providers. The…