For every student that tested positive, there were dozens of friends or classmates found to be in close contact with them, sidelining them from the classroom as well.
Ron French
Ron French is the senior enterprise reporter at Bridge Michigan, covering a wide range of topics including rural communities, federal policy impacts, education and public health. Born and raised in Indiana, Ron came to Bridge in 2011 from The Detroit News, where he was a project reporter, and previously reported for newspapers across Indiana. He graduated from Purdue University.
Rooted in Okemos, Ron has become a true Michigander — complete with a family cabin Up North.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
State identifies Michigan K-12 schools and colleges with COVID outbreaks
The public can now see what K-12 schools and colleges in the state have coronavirus outbreaks, thanks to new state reporting championed by Bridge Michigan and other media outlets. There are now more than 1,300 college cases.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
Officials urge 38,000 MSU students to quarantine 14 days after COVID spike
Ingham County says 342 people linked to MSU tested positive for COVID. County health officials say off-campus parties contribute to the rise and warn that its recommendation will become an order if case increases continue.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
Whitmer thanks Michigan COVID essential workers with free community college
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer set aside $24 million in federal CARES Act funds to allow people required to work through the height of the coronavirus crisis to receive a free associate’s degree at a local community college.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
Michigan colleges pass 1,000 COVID cases. Apparently, students like to party.
Strict health protocols on campuses aren’t stopping the spread of coronavirus. With cases rising fast, some experts fear more a wave of deaths, but others say aggressive testing and quarantining could prevent the worst from happening.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
Whitmer’s ‘real-time’ school coronavirus outbreak data could be a week old
Michigan will begin listing schools with outbreaks Monday, but disclosure is bogged down by testing delays and reporting lag times. Some fear the information will be so dated, it could be of little use to parents.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
Betsy DeVos: Michigan can expect standardized tests, despite COVID-19
Michigan school leaders asked for a waiver from federal requirements for such tests because of the pandemic. DeVos said no, arguing that the pandemic makes it even more critical to measure and compare school performance.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
Quesadillas, Netflix and silence in Central Michigan’s ‘COVID dorm’
The hallways are deadly quiet. They can hear sounds from other rooms but don’t know who lives there, and can’t visit. Life in CMU’s COVID Dorm is an eerie, monotonous journey for two, now-separated roommates.
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
From CMU to tiny Adrian, COVID-19 keeps marching through Michigan colleges
With coronavirus cases spiking on some campuses, colleges are adjusting to ‘the inevitable.’
Posted inMichigan Education Watch
Two weeks into classes, Central Michigan University has 178 COVID-19 cases
The outbreak at the mid-Michigan public university started with off-campus parties. Now, there are cases in dorms, too.