A proposed $405 million infusion to the Great Start Readiness Program could come from federal COVID funds and the state’s school aid fund. It would provide free preschool to 17,000 more children from low- and moderate-income families.
Ron French
Ron reports on a variety of subjects across the state. Ron came to Bridge in 2011 from The Detroit News, where he was a project reporter. Born and raised in Indiana, Ron graduated from Purdue University. He reported for newspapers across Indiana before moving to Michigan in 1995. Ron lives in Okemos, and like the true Michigander he’s become, he now has a family cabin Up North. You can reach him at rfrench@bridgemi.com or 517-214-3636.
Posted inTalent & Education
Gov. Whitmer against expanding Michigan’s read-or-flunk law to 4th-graders
An expansion of the controversial third-grade law that recommends retention for students more than a grade level behind in reading was approved by a Senate committee Wednesday.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan’s 3rd-grade read-or-flunk law may expand to 4th grade next year
If passed, the Republican bill could impact thousands of additional students across two grades next year. Critics say expanding the controversial law is a mistake, given the disruption to learning among all grade levels during the pandemic.
Posted inThe Center for Michigan
Meet Bridge Michigan’s interns for summer 2021
Bridge Michigan will have interns this summer from Central Michigan University, Michigan State University, the University of Michigan and Yale University.
Posted inTalent & Education
Gov. Whitmer pitches financial incentives to recruit more Michigan teachers
Facing a crucial post-pandemic school year, Michigan leaders are exploring ways to bolster a dwindling teacher corps, from loan forgiveness programs to boosting starting pay.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan asked ex-teachers to return to school. In 3 weeks, 1,200 said yes.
With Michigan facing a widening teacher shortage, the state superintendent suggested a rule tweak with huge ramifications: waive the 150 hours of training ex-teachers are required to take to return to classrooms.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
$1 million lotteries and baseball for COVID shots? Not in Michigan
Other states are getting creative in efforts to get shots into the arms of the vaccine-hesitant. Michigan hasn’t done that so far, prompting debate about whether the state should do more to move the needle.
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan school superintendents: mostly male, nearly all white
Michigan school superintendents are 95 percent white and less than 4 percent Black. And while teachers are 77 percent female, superintendents are 77 percent male. State leaders say it’s hard to find diverse candidates. Minority leaders see other factors at work.
Posted inMichigan Health Watch
History, algebra … and Pfizer? Michigan high schools host vaccine clinics
Vaccinating Michigan teens and young adults will be key to lifting pandemic limits and reaching herd immunity. Health officials are scrambling to make COVID vaccines available to high school students, who are getting shots at far lower rates.
Posted inTalent & Education
Some Michigan schools allow students to say ‘no thanks’ to M-STEP tests
Michigan schools must offer the annual standardized test, but, because of the pandemic, not all students have to take it. That could make the results less useful than normal.