Bridge Magazine is taking a hiatus this week to enjoy the festivities surrounding Independence Day. New stories will appear at Bridge on July 10. In the meantime, please feel free to explore the site. For example, check out some of our searchable databases: * See how your local schools do on college remediation. * What […]
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
GAO wades into charter-school special ed
Publicly funded independent, or charter, schools educate fewer children with disabilities than traditional public schools, suggests a new report by the Government Accountability Office. But the report, reported by Education Week here, notes that there are a number of contributing factors that make clear conclusions difficult: “Several factors may help explain why enrollment levels of students with […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Colleges' ROI more complicated than simple math
Philip Swanson, fresh from earning his degree in civil engineering from Wayne State University, already is among a fortunate minority. While more than 50 percent of college grads under age 25 are either jobless or under-employed, Swanson has secured a full-time job in his field of study. And, because he earned a baseball scholarship and […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Is Michigan higher ed headed for a shakeout?
Richard Vedder is a higher ed heretic. At a time when virtually everyone is pushing for more kids to go to college, the director of the Center for College Affordability & Productivity argues the traditional college deal is not what it used to be. With college graduates plentiful and jobs scarce, a diploma from a […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Join school forums in Detroit, Grand Rapids, Dearborn
Michigan will spend nearly $13 billion out of its School Aid Fund for the coming year. Most of that money will go to public schools across the state. Is Michigan getting the most it can out of the school investment? The Center for Michigan stands ready to help you join the discussion on K-12 education. […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Study on Michigan early childhood efforts provides startling results
Children who attended a public pre-K school program had greater success throughout their K-12 career, including graduating at a higher rate, according to a first-of-its-kind study that followed more than 500 Michigan children for 14 years. That study, to be discussed today at a meeting of the State Board of Education, provides fuel to growing […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Grand Rapids, Detroit losing race to gain college graduates
The Detroit and Grand Rapids metro areas have tripled the proportion of their residents with college degrees since 1970. Still, an expert on work-force development in Michigan says the state’s two largest urban centers are treading water — at best. An analysis by the Brookings Institution of the 100 largest metro areas placed Detroit 65th […]
Posted inTalent & Education
45 minutes with the mustache
My upfront prejudice, so you all know where I’m coming from, here on the last day of the Mackinac Policy Conference: I’m not a Thomas Friedman fan. The New York Times columnist and best-selling author traffics in glib catchphrases, strangely articulate taxi drivers in Bangalore and a certain sort of cheery fear-mongering. His talk Thursday […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Businesses endorse preschool expansion
To the 100 business leaders who signed the Michigan Early Childhood Business Plan, the choice is simple: Pay a little now, or pay a lot later. And so they gathered on the porch of the Grand Hotel Wednesday at the Mackinac Policy Conference to call for publicly funded preschool for 38,000 eligible 4-year-old children currently […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Early childhood proposal draws media gaze
A coalition of business and community leaders announced the backing of 100 business leaders Wednesday for a plan to commit $130 million to insure that all eligible 4-year-olds in Michigan can attend half-day preschool. Research shows that as many as 38,000 eligible preschoolers are not receiving preschool services because of a lack of funds in […]