Michigan State University students joined peers at University of Michigan in setting up an encampment, joining a national movement that has become a test of campus free speech principles.
Isabel Lohman
Isabel reports on early childhood, K-12 and higher education for Bridge Michigan. She loves visiting schools and analyzing how policies made in Lansing affect students and educators. Previously, she was the children’s issues reporter for the Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee. There, she reported on the state's third-largest public school district's COVID-19 response and how a community copes after losing teenagers to gun violence. Isabel grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and has also lived in Missouri, Tennessee and Belgium. Isabel moved to Ann Arbor in January 2022 where she experienced her first Michigan winter. She has a warm winter hat with a snap-on puff ball. You can reach Isabel at ilohman@bridgemi.com.
Posted inMichigan Government
Democrats ditching Whitmer plans for Michigan trash fee hike, EV rebates
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants to raise landfill fees to fund environmental cleanups and provide rebates for electric vehicles. Fellow Democrats are having second thoughts in the Legislature.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan gun plan would make schools share safe storage law with parents
Parents of Oxford school shooting victims are backing a proposal that would require Michigan schools to tell families about the state’s new safe storage law and how to keep guns away from kids.
Posted inTalent & Education
FAFSA fiasco leaves Michigan students, families in ‘anxiety inducing’ limbo
Federal aid application woes mean Michigan families are contemplating college decisions without crucial information: How much it will cost.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan’s plan to boost FAFSA: Free pizza for college aid applications
With federal aid applications lagging amid a botched federal rollout, Michigan leaders are hoping free pizza might be a motivator for high school students considering college.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan schools hired 874 mental health staffers — under program set to end
With a mental health crisis still rippling through schools, Michigan districts face tough decisions as funding expires for a pandemic-era program used to hire more than 800 counselors, psychologists and other support staff.
Posted inTalent & Education
More FAFSA problems: What Michigan families need to know about financial aid
The federal government promised to make it easier to apply for college aid. It messed up — again.
Posted inTalent & Education
What Biden’s new student loan forgiveness plan means for Michigan borrowers
President Joe Biden is trying again to forgive millions of student loans. His administration says 87,680 Michigan borrowers have already seen some relief despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down an initial plan.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan schools have more teachers, fewer students. Are layoffs coming?
Michigan schools may have to lay off or otherwise ‘lose”’more than 5,000 teachers to balance budgets as federal pandemic funding expires amid continued enrollment declines, according to a new analysis.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan FAFSA challenges: High school seniors slow to fill out form
Less than one-third of Michigan high schools seniors have filled out a federal form required to qualify for state and federal loans, grants and scholarships. Experts worry the low submission rate could lead to low college enrollment and students missing out on free money.