Anything could happen in the Michigan Legislature before the end of the year, but it appears likely that very little will happen prior to Democrats taking the majority in January.
Over a decade of Republican dominance in Michigan, perhaps no individual shaped Michigan school policy as much as DeVos. Democrats now hope to undo her work.
Michigan education officials received the public records request in May seeking data on how local districts plan to spend $6.2 billion in federal relief funds. The state says it would take 300 — no, 807 — hours to vet the records before releasing them.
The school board had been under months of pressure from a raucous group of parents and activists to remove books with LGBTQ, sexual, or sexual violence themes. Other books are still under review.
Tuesday’s election put Democrats in charge of the state House, Senate and governor’s office. That could mean bonuses for teachers, more funding for vulnerable districts and an end to the third-grade reading law.
When Republicans lost control of the Michigan Legislature on Tuesday, they also lost the ability to enact voter ID and voucher-like scholarship petitions without a signature from the Democratic governor.
From the governor’s race to local school boards, the ‘parental rights’ movement has dominated debates on education policy this election year. But movement-backed candidates had limited success Tuesday in local school board elections.
Republicans framed the education debate in Michigan this year on culture war issues including transgender inclusion, diversity and critical race theory. But in statewide races, it was Democrats who emerged victorious.
We must ask the right questions to those running for offices this November, and those questions start with whether their priorities stand with our students or their own politics.
More than 10 percent of students opted out of at least one vaccine in five Michigan counties, leaving areas open to potentially deadly outbreaks. Said one ‘vaccine choice’ leader: Parents know what’s best for their children.
The latest national testing underscores the pandemic’s toll on math and reading scores. Michigan’s fourth-graders had the lowest reading scores in 30 years. Black and low-income students fell further behind white, more affluent students.
The Detroit school district’s poor performance on NAEP, better known as “the nation’s report card,” adds new urgency to its long-term reform efforts, which seek to bolster student achievement, test scores and attendance rates
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s first term was defined by COVID. A Bridge analysis finds the facts are clear: Her orders spared lives, but did so at a cost to the economy and K-12 learning.
As students and schools try to recover from the pandemic, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Republican challenger Tudor Dixon have vastly different plans for how to improve Michigan schools and colleges.
MSU researchers found the negative effects of remote learning persisted even after students returned to classrooms last year, though these performance gaps shrunk once most classrooms reopened.