In their words: What Michigan governor candidates would do to fix schools

Bridge Michigan readers say K-12 school struggles are one of the most pressing election-year issues
How do governor candidates say they’ll fix it? Bridge asked nine leading candidates to weigh in on a variety of education issues
Here are their responses, in full

Bridge readers say Michigan’s struggling K-12 schools are one of the most pressing issues this election year.

So we asked related questions to the major party candidates, including both who qualified for the general election ballot:

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat
US Rep. John James, a Republican

Here’s what they had to say, in full:

Childhood Literacy

The question: Michigan ranks 44th in 4th grade reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. What does Michigan need to do to improve these scores? Are there current policies you would keep, change or eliminate?

Benson (D): As a mom, the daughter of two special education teachers, a former educator, and a data-driven leader with experience transforming statewide systems, I am ready to tackle Michigan’s literacy crisis with the urgency and leadership it requires.

That means developing a comprehensive, data driven plan to transform how we address early literacy in this state. The plan should incorporate data, best practices, timelines and benchmarks, with a goal of meeting our students and educators where they are and ensuring every child in Michigan’s public schools is able to read at their expected reading levels.

Related:

Tutoring, early literacy coaching, and additional professional support for our educators is critical and have worked in states like Mississippi and Maryland to turn around reading scores. But we still today have over 400 different literacy curricula in use, many of which have no basis in evidence or data as a successful approach to teaching. That’s inefficient and unfair to educators and students who are striving to succeed.

I’ve proposed the MiKids Success Plan to address early literacy and prepare every kid in Michigan to succeed. It combines existing remedies: current plans to ensure every K–3 teacher and coach is trained in the LETRS early literacy program and ensuring our schools are utilizing high-quality, research-backed core curricula for literacy and math.

However, we need to take this one step further. My MiKids Success Plan will ensure every child in Michigan has a personalized roadmap for literacy success.

The MiKids Success Plan

Here’s how it will work. Beginning in kindergarten, every Michigan student will initiate their own personal MiKids Success Plan — a living, evolving personalized education roadmap linked to each student and reviewed every semester with families and educators.

Each plan will include:

A snapshot of a student’s readiness at kindergarten entry
Clear benchmarks and supports to reach proficiency in reading by grade 4 and math by grade 8
A roadmap to begin a career and college readiness pathway by grade 11
Documentation of wraparound services, attendance, and how out-of-school experiences can enhance classroom learning
Regular metrics and tracking, using both assessments and portfolio evidence to guide progress

This plan will eliminate the one-size-fits-all approaches that have failed in the past. It will also ensure we are not waiting until a child is in crisis to intervene, and empower parents, educators, and students themselves to develop a plan, partnership, and path for successful literacy attainment and growth for every child.

James (R): Michigan ranks 44th in the nation for 4th grade reading, and in Detroit only 13% of third graders can read at grade level. That is not a policy failure, it is a moral failure, and as Governor I will pursue legislative action to require proven phonics instruction from kindergarten through third grade, following the Mississippi model that delivered the nation’s greatest reading gains.

Choice and Charters

The question: Michigan offers public school choice and charter schools, which are publicly funded. Would you push to change anything about the system, including signing up Michigan for the national tax credit scholarship program?

Benson (D): Strong public schools are the foundation of strong communities, and as Governor, my focus will be on strengthening the public education system so that every child, regardless of their zip code, has access to a quality education that will prepare them for the jobs of tomorrow.

That includes ensuring parents have a voice in their child’s education. What Michigan does not need is policies that further drain resources from the neighborhood public schools where the vast majority of our children learn. Michigan’s charter schools can and should be part of a thriving educational landscape — but that means holding them to the same rigorous standards we expect of all public schools. We will pursue stronger oversight, greater transparency, and real accountability, because Michigan families deserve nothing less.

James (R): I led the passage of the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit in Congress, creating privately funded scholarships so parents can choose the best school or education service for their children. On day one as Governor, I will opt Michigan into the Federal K-12 Education Freedom Tax Credit through immediate executive action, unlocking scholarships for tutoring, special needs services, and after school programs. Competition and choice make every school better.

College readiness

The question: Statewide, only about 27% of high schoolers are college-ready, as determined by student performance on the SAT. How would your administration ensure students are college and career ready when they graduate Michigan high schools?

Benson (D): I ran Wayne State Law School with one goal: to prepare all of our students for the well paying jobs of tomorrow. That meant establishing broad but delineable and consistent graduation requirements that every student would be expected to meet prior to graduation. Conversely, Michigan’s non-competitive K-12 policies and statewide graduation standards make it impossible to prepare Michigan’s next generation to thrive in our economy. Michigan must adopt a clear, rigorous, comprehensive college and career readiness expectation that every K-12 school can utilize to establish a foundation that is to be part of each student’s graduation requirements. One suggested measure is to adopt a globally-competitive college and career education standard that is tied to students graduating from high school. Such a standard is broad enough to encompass the varying needs of individuals and schools while also prioritizing the need for all students to develop skills – from academics and career preparation to digital literacy and financial health – that will serve them regardless of what 21st century post secondary pathway they choose. Consistent skill expectations enable educators to connect learning to real careers through hands-on projects, internships, and unique programs that empower each student to build their own pathway to thrive.

James (R): We will enact legislation to require that every non-college bound student graduates with a marketable license, trade certification, or professional portfolio so that a Michigan high school diploma truly means something. We will also align our K-12 curriculum, community colleges, and workforce training programs with real employer demand through proven models like co-op and mentorship programs that connect students to careers beginning in middle school.

Staffing challenges

The question: The teacher shortage remains a challenge in schools, even as the state has worked to lower the cost of getting a teaching credential. What would you do to ensure Michigan’s schools have the staff they need?

Benson (D): I am the daughter of two special education teachers and a former educator. I know firsthand that the challenges educators face every day are real, they are urgent, and they demand a Governor who will use every tool in the toolbox to make our schools the best in the nation.

Michigan is facing a serious educator shortage. We need approximately 40% more teachers and 20% more support staff in our public schools. Recruiting and retaining talented educators requires more than kind words — it requires concrete investment. That starts with raising starting teacher salaries to at least $60,000 and meaningfully increasing compensation for experienced teachers and school support staff. But compensation is only part of the answer. Educators need a voice in the decisions that affect their classrooms, and they need the resources — time, training, support, and materials — to do their jobs well. When we support educators, we support students.

James (R): Through executive action and legislation, we will reduce overly restrictive licensing barriers blocking talented professionals, engineers, tradespeople, and experienced retirees from bringing their expertise into Michigan classrooms. We will also redirect dollars currently consumed by administrative overhead directly into teacher pay, rewarding our highest performers with the compensation and recognition they deserve.

Changing school metrics

The question: Michigan has repeatedly changed how it measures school performance over the past decade. Is Michigan’s approach to school accountability effective? Would you propose a different method?

Benson (D): Having led an educational institution with clear, delineable graduation standards tied to real outcomes, taking being ranked in the bottom tier nationwide to a top tier, I know what rigorous and consistent expectations look like and what they produce. Michigan’s K-12 system needs the same commitment – and we won’t get there with threats and closures and firings. Effective accountability means adopting a clear, comprehensive, globally competitive college and career readiness standard that every school can use as a north star, coupled with meaningful intervention and support when schools struggle to meet those goals. That standard must be broad enough to account for individual needs and diverse pathways — from four-year college to skilled trades to military service — while ensuring every student develops the academic, career, digital, and financial skills they will need to thrive. Michigan’s students and educators deserve a system that is stable, rigorous, and focused on success.

James (R): Michigan’s families deserve better than a report card that keeps changing. I will push legislation to replace it with a system built on transparency, consistency, and continuous improvement so parents always know exactly where their child’s school stands. I trust parents and families to choose the best education for their children. Effective accountability in education can only be achieved by empowering parents with the broadest array of educational options. As Governor I will use every power at my disposal to give parents and taxpayers the maximum power to hold their schools accountable for results.

School funding and equity

The question: Michigan has made gains in per-pupil funding in recent years but some districts are unable to pass bonds or sinking funds to fund school infrastructure. Are Michigan schools adequately funded, and would you like to change how Michigan doles out money to schools? If so, please describe how. Additionally, would you seek to alter funding for free pre-K and school meals?

Benson (D): State leaders have a moral responsibility to ensure every school has the necessary funding to support our educators and prepare our young people for the jobs of tomorrow. Report after report tells us that schools in Michigan are underfunded. This is because for the better part of three decades Michigan has defunded its schools at a higher rate than any other state in the country. We need to restore that lost investment and replace our antiquated one size fits all funding model with a transparent equitable funding model that meets the unique needs of every school and every student.

An equitable funding model will also use tools like our Opportunity Index to help ensure students living in poverty get the additional support they need to be successful, while providing sustainable funding for special education, career and technical education and infrastructure improvements. And yes, that means continuing to ensure we are providing meals for every child in the state, because all the data reinforcing the success of the current program underscores how much better kids learn when their bellies are full.

Right-sizing funding for our schools and correcting the decades of disinvestment won’t be sufficient to ensure Michigan’s education system is among the best in the nation. We also need clear metrics for success, transparency requirements for how the money is spent and a robust graduation standard with effective accountability measures. But as a mom and former educator, I know we can’t grow Michigan’s economy, keep our talent in state and make Michigan the best place to raise a kid and call home, without making well funded public education a priority for all of us.”

James (R): Michigan’s education dollars should reach every child they were meant to serve, not be consumed by administrative bureaucracy that never touches a single classroom. Through executive action, we will find efficiencies across our nearly 600 school districts and conduct a full audit of school meal spending to ensure that no needy child goes hungry, no dollar is wasted, and savings are directed to the classroom.

Johnson (R): Michigan taxpayers are sending billions of dollars into the education system every year, yet we continue to see academic standards and student performance slide. Before talking about new funding formulas, we need to focus on results. My administration would review how education dollars are being spent and make sure resources are actually reaching students, teachers, classrooms, and actually improving student outcomes.