Nearly all Michigan districts say they follow the state’s open enrollment policy, which allows students to enroll in other districts with open seats. But in reality, districts can sharply restrict outside students, and that must change.
Michigan is the only state that requires most counselors to get updated training in college and career counseling to maintain their credential. It’s one of many reasons to support their quiet but important work and ensure funding to pay for more of them.
Parents’ rights groups aiming to stop school discussions on diversity and LGTBQ issues generally lost at the ballot box. But they are not going away, leaving schools and vulnerable students still in great need of public support.
Imposing three-to-five-year funding cycles makes school funding more predictable and enables better district forecasting. Currently, districts rely on the whims of politics one year to the next. It makes it harder for districts to budget, which makes it harder to solve the teacher shortage issue or hire more counselors.
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.
At a time of statewide and national educator shortages, it is critical we find new ways to encourage our best educators to remain in the field and attract the brightest and best educators of tomorrow.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Republicans deserve plaudits for approving new financial aid funding. But there are broader, less complex tuition-free college programs to bolster the state’s workforce needs.
Michigan will only reach our goal to become a Top Ten state for education if we invest in all of our students and create a system that supports their needs.
Budgets are a reflection of priorities. In Michigan, it is clear our priorities are to support our kids, support our workforce, and use our resources to address current needs with an eye toward the future.
Schools should be safe places in which children learn, socialize, and grow. It is time for the Michigan legislature to heed the call of Michiganders on the issue of common sense gun reform.
When students with disabilities are unable to engage with content being used in the classroom, they miss out on enriching educational experiences and their fellow students miss out on their peers’ valuable contributions to classroom discussions and activities.
Every kid deserves to feel safe and supported in school, and I am proud that we have come together to deliver a budget that gives every kid an opportunity to succeed.
If we allow a small but vocal group of people to dictate to the rest of us what we should read, view, or say, particularly when they use scare tactics and intimidation to get what they want, it will be a death knell for our free society.
