By David Baker/Baker Strategy Group Businesses play an essential role in Michigan’s economy. Business is the economic engine that pays people for their time and contribution and converts their work into products and services that customers need. According to the 2010 Census, there are close to 175,000 businesses in Michigan (excluding the estimated 680,000 non-employee […]
Guest Commentary
At Bridge, we believe in listening to voices from all over our state. Got something to say? Contact us and join the conversation (details below)
How to submit a Guest Commentary
What to know:
Bridge welcomes a diversity of voices and perspectives from readers on issues important to Michigan. Guest commentaries reflect the views of the author(s), and are independent of the nonpartisan, fact-driven reporting of Bridge’s newsroom staff.
Commentaries must be the author’s original work and preferably will not have appeared first in other publications. Bridge reserves the right to decline submissions at our discretion.
We reserve the right to edit commentary for grammar, clarity, brevity or to address legal or factual concerns. We may offer editing suggestions, but in the service of making your work more accessible, not to alter your views.
We do not pay for guest commentary.
Here are some guidelines:
- Columns are usually 500-700 words
- They generally focus on a Michigan topic or policy and should avoid ad hominem attacks
- The more direct, distinct and/or intimate your perspective, the more effective your column will be
- The best columns do more than identify problems; they also offer solutions and facts to back them up
- Please include a one- or two-sentence bio, including the writer’s organization or relevant background.
- Authors must show their work, by backing up facts with links to reports or studies
- Bridge does not publish self-promotional columns or candidate endorsements
- Send a good quality, large headshot of the writer(s) as an attachment
- We also ask that, in return for publishing a guest commentary, the author(s) and their organizations generously promote the link to the published column through your Facebook, Twitter and other social or professional networks.
That’s about it. Keep the writing clear, conversational and free of jargon, and sell our smart and receptive readership on the argument you are trying to make.
Who to contact:
Email your submission or idea to guestcommentary@bridgemi.com. Please briefly describe who you are and what you would like to say and put the words “guest commentary” in the email subject line.
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Kindergarten retention, in current form, doesn’t help children
By Larry Schweinhart/HighScope Educational Research Foundation One of our conclusions from the 2012 Great Start Readiness Program Evaluation was that grade retention is a major state policy, made locally, that deserves serious study. Of students who had the Great Start program, 37 percent repeated a grade during their schooling, as compared to nearly half the comparison […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Medicaid expansion is good for Michigan small businesses
By Rob Fowler/SBAM The Small Business Association of Michigan supports the broadening of eligibility criteria to participate in the Medicaid program so that people under 138 percent of the poverty level can be covered. SBAM may be considered a surprising voice in support of this effort. However, I’ve been at the intersection of small business […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: University research alliance boosts economy, jobs in Michigan
By Jeff Mason/University Research Corridor As Michigan’s economy continues its resurgence, the three major state universities that make up Michigan’s University Research Corridor are doing their part to educate and develop the workers who can give businesses a clear advantage in today’s competitive global economy. The URC – consisting of Michigan State University, the University of […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Restore equal representation in Mich.
By State Rep. Jim Townsend Every 10 years, Michigan gets the opportunity to press the reset button on its state and federal political boundaries. This is necessary to uphold the principle of equal representation for all by adjusting district boundaries to reflect geographic shifts in population. But because the redistricting process is left in the […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Charter school boards need more training, guidance
By Gary Sands Since the new Legislature convened in January, more than 40 bills related to public education have been introduced. These bills cover a wide range of topics, from funding for pre-kindergarten programs to high school graduation requirements. There is clearly widespread interest in maintaining and improving the quality of elementary and secondary education […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Sunshine obscured by smog
By Rich Robinson/Michigan Campaign Finance Network “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” — Luke 12: 48 Dear State Officeholder: Please set aside the archaic sexism of the verse I’ve quoted to introduce this letter. Our […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Michigan’s Great Start preschool program helps children learn
By Lawrence J. Schweinhart/HighScope Educational Research Foundation Dear Michigan Legislator: In recent testimony before committees of the Michigan House of Representatives, Michael Van Beek of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy challenged the evidence supporting expansion and improvement of Michigan’s Great Start Readiness Program. As director of the Great Start Readiness Program Evaluation and the […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Expanding preschool is first step in education advance
By Michele Corey/Michigan’s Children Advocates across the state are rejoicing in Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposed $65 million expansion ($130 million over two years) for the Great Start Readiness Program– Michigan’s public preschool program for 4-year-olds at-risk of being under-prepared for kindergarten. Credit is due to the Center for Michigan and Bridge Magazine for bringing additional […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Make businesses pay their fair share for schools, roads, universities
By Rep. Pam Faris Doug Rothwell, president and CEO of Business Leaders for Michigan, recently proposed a three-point plan to get Michigan moving. Rothwell’s plan applauds Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposed budget for fiscal 2014, acknowledging his investments in pre-K education, community colleges and higher education and the rebuilding of our infrastructure. While I agree that […]