Students aren't the only ones with school on their brains Tuesday evening.

"We cannot be slashing the heck out of public schools," says Governor Jennifer Granholm.

We caught up with Governor Granholm twice Tuesday, and both times school funding was the topic she wanted to talk about most.

"Right now is the time to stand up for public education. Right now is the time to make sure these kids can go to college," she says.

The Governor's focus on school funding isn't arbitrary. Nearly a week after a state budget was due, the separate school aid budget is anything but settled. Lawmakers haven't even passed a continuation school budget as of 6 p.m. Tuesday, even though House Speaker Andy Dillon said earlier in the day to wilx.com it'd be finished.

"We're acting today," Dillon says. "You'll see a lot of movement in the house today. We'll send all our priorities to the senate, and make sure we fund schools, fund education and fund police."

"If we don't get the school aid budget done, we could lose federal dollars they need right now for special education," says Rep. Rick Jones, (R) Grand Ledge.

That's nearly $22 million a week in federal money, to be exact, that can't be paid to schools unless a budget's in place. But to fund schools the way some want to, there's growing talk of new revenue. What that is remains to be seen.

"What we're fighting for is for Michigan not to be Mississippi. We're fighting to make sure Michigan has a diverse economy with educated citizens and protecting people along the way," Governor Granholm says.

This comes after the Senate and House took a four-day weekend. When we asked legislators from both bodies why it happened, they pointed fingers at each other. One lawmaker indicated he'd like for the House to lock everyone in a room until the budget is settled.