February has an extra day this year; why not take your lunch hour (noon to 1 p.m.) on Feb. 29 to join other concerned Michigan residents to discuss student learning in Michigan schools? The Center for Michigan, Bridge’s parent organization, is joining forces with the Detroit Free Press to host an online conversation about ways to improve […]
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Posted inMichigan Government
Shifting prison politics: How GOP is getting smarter on crime
Prison reform — once considered a ticket out of office for politicians — is spreading around the country, and in some unlikely places. In many states, the efforts to reduce prison populations are being led by “law-and-order” Republicans. In 2011, half of the 26 states that passed prison reforms were led by Republican governors; in 10 of […]
Posted inMichigan Government
An unlikely advocate for review of Michigan prison sentences
Joe Haveman is about the last person in the State Capitol you’d expect to advocate for softer prison sentences. The 50-year-old Holland native is a conservative Republican legislator from a conservative Republican district, the kind of pedigree associated with the attitude of locking them up and throwing away the key. “We tried that,” Haveman noted. […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Cut prison spending, CFM tells Senate panel
My written testimony for a meeting today of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Corrections: “Good afternoon. Thank you Senator (John) Proos and fellow members of the committee for the opportunity to speak with you today. In 2008, the Center for Michigan organized a diverse group of business, nonprofit and public sector organizations all concerned with the […]
Posted inTalent & Education
School virtual; learning real
When high school senior Makenzi Leinhert had a schedule conflict last year, she didn’t have to make the choice between core classes or electives. Instead, her counselor suggested she take an online algebra course to fulfill a requirement and open up her schedule for other face-to-face courses. “When I took Algebra 2 online, my mom […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links: Prison edition
The political dynamics of each state will vary, but the trend toward changes in how states deal with prisons and holding felons is unmistakable. A few highlights from around the nation: * A full rundown, from an advocacy group, of state by state reform efforts, including whether the states have sentencing commissions: http://www.famm.org/StateSentencing.aspx * Georgia […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Private-public pact gets Troy on track
For the entire 10 years Michele Hodges had been president of the Troy Chamber of Commerce, a new rail-and-bus transit center for the Oakland County community had been in the works. Then, on Dec. 19, 2011, the Troy City Council voted 4-3 to turn down $8.5 million in federal funds for the transit center, which […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Government dollars and rural Michigan
A small Michigan subplot to the New York Times’ story about how opposition to government benefits programs appears to spike in areas where government benefits are most prevalent. In 2010, Dan Benishek ran for — and won –Michigan’s 1st Congressional District, which then covered the U.P. and a good hunk of the northeastern quadrant of […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Ah, so! Second thoughts for Hoekstra's star?
Before the furor over Pete Hoekstra’s “Debbie Spenditnow” ad dies down — the usual suspects having read their lines and otherwise played the parts they were assigned earlier in the week — take a moment to read this, a briefing on the Chinese-American actress whose role was right out of Central Casting, c. 1932. An […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Guest post: K-12 'increase' is actually a cut
By Mitch Bean Compared to last year, this year’s gubernatorial budget presentation was a bit boring. There were, however, a few interesting aspects worth mentioning. Let’s start with the way funding for K-12 was described. The description in the budget document is that the recommendation for FY 2013 is a 2.5 percent increase, and the […]
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