Nicholas Knoch from Lake Fenton High School tightens the bolts of his team’s robot at the FIRST Robotics Competition in Connie and Jim John Recreation Center on the campus of Kettering University. His team is the Lake Fenton Hazmat. FLINT – On the same day Michigan State University did battle in football with the University […]
Talent & Education
To prosper, Michigan must be a more educated place. Bridge will explore the challenges in education and identify policies and initiatives that address them.
Posted inTalent & Education
Okemos High School celebrates 'nerds'
Okemos High School senior Gavin McDowell explains a complex physics equation. At Okemos High School in Ingham County, it is easy to believe the geeks shall inherit the earth. With a 4.0 grade average, senior Gavin McDowell already has completed advanced placement classes in physics, chemistry and calculus. He is a whiz on the quiz […]
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Mood of Detroit at a glance: What city residents want from the next mayor
Generally speaking, do you think things in Detroit are on the right track or would you say things in Detroit are on the wrong track? Right track35.7%Wrong track43.2%Don’t know21.0%Refused0.2% Thinking about the next year, do you think things in Detroit will get better, get worse or stay the same? Get better60.2%Get worse7.2%Stay the same22.2%Don’t know10.5%Refused0.0% […]
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Tax breaks are a bounty crop for Michigan farms
With scant public notice, Gov. Rick Snyder signed legislation in June aimed at better management of Michigan forests. Embedded in the package of nine bills is a provision that adds one more benefit to state farmers, who already enjoy state tax breaks that exceed $300 million a year. That sounds like a bargain when paired […]
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Old Mission postcard: land protection taxes benefit farmers – and neighbors
The purchase of development rights on Old Mission Peninsula in Grand Traverse County has spared thousands of acres of agricultural land. (Photo by Aaron Tackett – Always Aperture Photography) In a land with vistas that put a postcard to shame, residents of Old Mission Peninsula have twice voted to tax themselves so that cherry orchards […]
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Thumbs Up: Region leads Michigan in farm subsidies
At the tip of Michigan’s Thumb, Huron County is perhaps best known for miles of shoreline that wind along Saginaw Bay and Lake Huron and thousands of acres of fertile and flat farmland. Farmers cultivate everything from corn to navy beans to sugar beets and raise dairy cattle and chickens, ranking third in the state […]
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Your graduation rates may vary
It’s not a statistic highlighted in college pamphlets or admissions websites, but it’s a data point freshman should think about as they set up their dorm rooms this week: Not all of them have the same chance of graduating. White students are more likely to graduate than African-American students at almost all Michigan universities. And […]
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MLK’s dream not yet realized at college graduation – it’s not even close
Why is one of these college students more likely to graduate than the other? Michigan colleges are struggling to figure it out. (Bridge photo by Monique Belser) Paulette Granberry Russell remembers walking on the sprawling campus of Michigan State University as a scared, under-prepared freshman. “I was an African-American woman and first-generation (to attend college […]
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2013 Michigan Scorecard
CATEGORY2008201020122014Student PerformancePoorPoorPoorPoor4th Grade Math33rd39th41st42nd8th Grade Math37th37th36th37th4th Grade Reading31st31st35th36th8th Grade Reading30th33rd33rd29th4th Grade ScienceNANA28th28th8th Grade ScienceNANA24th18thHigh School CompletionGoodFairGoodGoodGraduation rate75%76%76%76%Drop-out rate15%14%11%11%Adults with a diploma87%89%89%91%K-12 InvestmentGoodFairPoorPoorPer pupil expenditure16th20th24th25thTeacher salary7th9th12th8thCollege completionPoorPoorPoorPoorNational ranking35th35th35th37thCollege affordabilityPoorPoorPoorPoorNational rankingNA47th48th45thHigher education investmentPoorPoorPoorPoorNational ranking37th42nd41st39th JOBS, PROSPERITY AND ECONOMY SCORECARD CATEGORY2008201020122014Personal incomePoorPoorPoorPoorPer capita income ranking36th40th40th35thUnemployment ratePoorPoorPoorPoorUnemployment rate7.9%12.8%9.3%8.7%Job growthPoorPoorGoodGood Job growth ranking49th49th13th4thOverall economic growthPoorPoorGoodFairState GDP growth ranking50th50th13th18thExportsN/AFairGoodGood Exports ranking […]
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Oxford goes global to improve student learning
Oxford Community Schools is educating students far beyond its borders in the belief that it will make its local students more successful. This growing rural school district in northern Oakland County, about 40 miles north of Detroit, is bringing dozens of students from China to finish their last two years of high school in Oxford. […]