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Bridge Michigan's year-end campaign is happening now! Next year, candidates will make big promises about fixing what keeps you up at night: housing costs, crumbling roads, health care access, whether families can afford to stay in Michigan. We'll be there to fact-check every claim, investigate every policy, and hold every lawmaker accountable.
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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.
Missing from Michigan’s back-to-school checklist: A state budget.
Educators say the funding uncertainty is already forcing ‘difficult decisions.’
A case in Pontiac where three children were discovered to be living in squalor after their mother allegedly abandoned them is prompting a Michigan lawmaker to propose changes to student enrollment processes.
More than 30 people applied to be the next Michigan state superintendent. The state Board of Education has narrowed the list to seven semifinalists.
In a state with over 400 English language arts curricula used in elementary classrooms, a new investment may cut down on those programs. It just might raise test scores too.
Twelve school districts asked voters Tuesday to approve taxes to pay for school projects. In the end, only seven districts got their proposals passed.
Michigan voters can head to the polls Tuesday to decide local races and ballot proposals. Here’s what to know about the issues and election laws.
Michigan’s reading scores have dropped to crisis levels in the past 10 years. Republicans blame Democrats for repealing reforms; Democrats say their new strategies need time to work.
Tougher graduation requirements, more teacher training on literacy and more school choice are among the ideas candidates are pitching to improve Michigan K-12 education.
Michigan has 21,000 more teacher aides than a decade ago helping a shrinking population of schoolkids. Hiring more adults has yet to reverse learning skids, but one lawmaker likens it to turning around the Titanic.
Ten years ago, Michigan vowed to become a Top 10 state for education. Since then, it’s outspent many other states and seen diminishing returns amid a revolving door of reforms.
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