Who are the Michigan State Board of Education candidates? What to know.

The board currently has six Democrats and two Republicans. Two of the Democrats are running for re-election
Both Republican contenders want to see the state revisit recently revised health education standards
Candidates from both parties favor additional efforts to improve literacy and offer their views on Superintendent Glenn Maleyko

At the bottom of your Nov. 3 ballot is a decision about who will help lead education policy in the state for the next eight years.

Michigan voters will choose two people for the State Board of Education. The outcome could determine whether Democrats continue dominating a board that’s in charge of educating Michigan’s 1.4 million public school students — or if Republicans gain enough leverage to split the board 50-50 along party lines, potentially making it harder to push through policy changes.

The eight-member board meets monthly to discuss public education and it hires the state superintendent, who oversees the Michigan Department of Education.

Currently, it includes six Democrats and two Republicans. Two of the Democrats are running for re-election and two Republicans challengers are aiming to unseat them.

The board does not control the state education budget or pass new laws, but serves as the “general planning and coordinating body” for public education in the state. In recent months, the board has passed resolutions establishing a special education committee, requesting the Legislature “provide sufficient financial resources” for the board to conduct its duties and opposing the federal tax credit scholarship program.

Bridge Michigan interviewed the two Democratic candidates and two Republican candidates about what they would change in Michigan education, how they would rate State Superintendent Glenn Maleyko’s performance so far and the dynamics of a potential 4-4 board.

Republicans see their election bids as a chance to change public education while the Democrats want to continue their efforts to support public education.

The four candidates are:

Terence Collins, Republican

Age: 61

Occupation: senior financial analyst at General Motors
Resides in: Grosse Pointe Park

Bree Moeggenberg, Republican

Age: 47

Occupation: recruiter for a canvassing company, licensed child care provider

Resides in: Mt. Pleasant

Tiffany Tilley, Democrat

Age: 49

Occupation: Adjunct professor and Realtor

Resides in: West Bloomfield

Judith Pritchett, Democrat

Age: 75

Occupation: Education consultant and retired public school administrator

Resides in: Washington Township

Voters can also choose from third party candidates including Charles Essner (Libertarian), William Mohr II (US Taxpayers), Christine C. Schwartz (US Taxpayers), Wissam Charafeddine (Green), Mary Anne Hering (Working Class) and Kelli Monroe (Natural Law).

What would candidates do differently about literacy?

Michigan has reached a new low for third grade proficiency in English language arts. The state has made several changes aimed at improving scores. The new budget requires school districts that receive state funding to either select “evidence-based” reading curricula from a vetted list or notify parents why they have not done so. Meanwhile, the state is offering grants for districts to purchase new curricula.

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Starting next school year, districts also must screen students for signs of dyslexia, and by the 2031 school year, elementary teachers will be required to complete “science of reading” training.

In interviews with Bridge, candidates all acknowledged the state’s current efforts but varied on what else could be done to improve scores.

Collins:

Collins said the state is waiting too long to mandate phonics training for every teacher.

“Why not 12 months? Why not create a funding mechanism that allows teachers to take that over next summer or during break periods?”

He also referenced low third grade reading scores in Pontiac, Flint and Detroit and said he would deploy Michigan Department of Education staffers to those districts. (Detroit schools showed a small improvement on the latest Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress, or M-STEP, bucking a statewide trend of lower scores, but it remains below state averages.)

“I would have every one of those who’s got a master’s in English literature or English, I would have them camped out in all three of those districts sitting and doing nothing but teaching phonics to kids every day until those scores start to improve.”

Moeggenberg:

Moeggenberg praised the state’s emphasis on the “science of reading” but said the state must “restore instructional focus.”

Without that, “it does not matter if we have the best curriculum in the entire world,” Moeggenberg said. “If kids and teachers and parents are not prepared for a learning environment, if there’s not reliable, stable, neutral classrooms, nobody’s learning.”

Pritchett:

Pritchett said it’s important to “make sure that all of our teachers are supported in the classroom” and that schools have a shared understanding that literacy is the focus and that it will help other subjects too.

She wants to see schools move to smaller class sizes and the state emphasize the importance of parents reading to their young children.

“We’ve got the pieces in place right now, but we need to make sure we keep our eye there and our priorities there.”

Tilley:

Tilley sponsored a resolution last year urging the state to adopt mandatory training for teachers and praised the state’s new requirement. She said while she strongly believes in local control, “I believe that we need to look at different models of local control and states that are doing well when it comes to literacy, and see if there are any policies or laws that we need to change here in Michigan so that we are giving more input when it comes to our schools. “

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Is Michigan doing enough for students with disabilities?

There were 226,800 students receiving special education last school year in public, private or homeschool settings. This includes people from birth to 26 who have an Individualized Education Plan or Individualized Family Service Plan. These are personalized learning plans for students in special education that outline student goals and supports needed to accomplish the goals.

Many special education advocates have called for changes to Michigan’s special education system, including an increase in funding.

The state Board of Education recently established a bipartisan special education committee to “strengthen services, partnerships and outcomes for students with disabilities.”

Collins:

Collins said paraprofessionals who work with students with disabilities are “not paid extremely well,” which can lead to staffing turnover and making it harder for teachers.

Federal law mandates that students with disabilities are placed in the “least restrictive environment,” meaning with learning in classrooms with general education peers as much as possible. Collins said he understands that is a balancing act to ensure students with and without disabilities are getting a good learning environment.

He said “we need to do a better job. Number one is supporting the general teachers in those classrooms with the parapros who are going to be there every day. And making sure that we address the funding issue so that parapros, it’s seen as a profession or an occupation and not like a temporary part-time job.”

Moeggenberg:

Moeggenberg also referenced teacher support and praised legislation that would clarify what type of training teachers need to have in special education.

The bill has not received a hearing in the Legislature. Moeggenberg said the “longer we wait to do something, the more students that are going to be left behind.”

“We have to do so much better. We have to look at the sizes of the classrooms. We have to look at the support the teachers have, and we have to make sure that there’s parent involvement. And the schools are very clear with parent involvement in IEPs.”

Pritchett:

Pritchett is on the special education committee and referenced the shortage of special education teachers.

“So, can we do better? Absolutely, and that’s part of the reason the board is beginning to look at that to be able to come up with some suggestions and possible changes in procedures or working with parents.”

Tilley:

Tilley said “there is definitely room for improvement” and is glad the state Department of Education is “making changes within the department, leadership changes as well as there’s a new special ed committee.”

The department recently brought in a new deputy superintendent who oversees the special education department, along with three other units.

“We know some of the gaps, but we need to know where all of the gaps are. And what we can do on the state level to help support our districts to become stronger when it comes to our students with disabilities, our special education population.”

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Are there any state standards candidates want to see changed?

Both Republican candidates said they want changes to the health standards, which were recently approved last November and include a recommendation that schools provide instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation.

Students are required to take health class to graduate high school but can opt out of sex education with no penalty. Local schools determine which curricula to use and if students learn about abstinence or abstinence and other efforts to reduce chances of contracting an STI or becoming pregnant.

Last fall, proponents of the standards said they were age-appropriate and would help LGBTQ+ students understand themselves. Opponents say the standards undermine parental choice and religious liberties protections.

Collins:

“The guidelines, certainly the new gender identity guidelines, I think they have no place in public education or really any education,” Collins said. “Again, it detracts from the main goal, which is to teach our kids math and reading and arithmetic and everything else.”

He said he has also takes issue with socioemotional learning and wants to “get back to meritocracy and consequences.”

Moeggenberg:

Moeggenberg criticized the health education standards too, saying “no matter how much you polish a turd, it’s still a turd. You cannot teach health standards without teaching it from the perspective of health.”

She is against instructing students about transitioning gender identities.

“That’s political. That’s propaganda, and it is absolutely dangerous to do it that way.”

Moeggenberg wants the state to revisit the Michigan Merit Curriculum, the state’s high school graduation standards. She said requiring two years of foreign language makes sense for students headed to college but does not for other students. State rules allow students to take career and technical education courses or arts courses to fulfill this requirement.

Pritchett:

Pritchett said she would like to revisit the science standards and find ways to ensure that artificial intelligence is embedded into various state standards.

“If you’re going to have a strong literacy program, you should have a strong math, strong science, strong social studies. And all of that needs to work together. But… the bottom line is, literacy has to come first.”

Tilley:

Tilley also wants more work on artificial intelligence and said history is “especially important” to her and that students need to know history, including African American history.

“Our children can handle the truth,” Tilley said in a follow up email. “In fact, they need the truth. When students understand our history, they are better equipped to understand their communities, engage as informed citizens, and help shape the future.”

More:

How do candidates rate State Superintendent Glenn Maleyko’s performance so far?

Maleyko took the helm of the Michigan Department of Education in December 2025 and his contract goes until Dec. 2029. Before him, the state had an interim superintendent for two months after Michael Rice retired after being the leader since 2019.

Republicans said they were unimpressed by Maleyko, while Democrats praised Maleyko’s collaborative leadership style.

Collins:

“I think he’s failed in the few times he’s had an opportunity to shine,” said Collins.

Collins criticized Maleyko’s response to the US Department of Justice’s decision to investigate whether three Michigan districts were teaching students about sexual orientation and gender identity and their policies for who could use which locker room or bathroom.

Maleyko defended the state’s new standards and guidelines including parents’ rights to opt their children out of sex education. He said the federal government’s request for information “premised on a mischaracterization of the Michigan Health Education Standards Guidelines adopted by the State Board of Education, place a significant administrative burden on local districts and risk diverting time and resources away from the core mission of educating students.”

Collins said he agrees schools don’t have time to deal with the information request but “but if they don’t have time to do that, how do they have time to worry about gender identity and having bathrooms assigned that anyone can go into any bathroom?”

He also disagrees with Maleyko’s lack of support for the federal tax credit scholarship program, which would provide funds that could be used for private and public school students.

Moeggenberg:

“I am not super impressed with many things that he has done,” Moeggenberg said. She criticized Maleyko’s dual US-Canadian citizenship and questioned if someone “can honor two countries at the same time.”

“And that maybe is not specific to the State Board of Education but I have a really hard time knowing that he is from Canada, to my knowledge, and he’s sitting as the superintendent of education in Michigan.”

In a statement to Bridge, Maleyko said: “I have been an educator for more than 30 years in Michigan, where I live. I have served as a teacher, principal and superintendent in Dearborn Public Schools, and throughout my career, I have always put Students First. As Michigan’s state superintendent, Michigan’s students have been — and always will be — my top priority.”

Pritchett:

“I’ve been very, very pleased with the direction he’s taking us, his energy level, and his interaction not only with staff at MDE and the board, but as importantly, with the field,” said Pritchett. “Because they need to know that the state superintendent is, first of all, a teacher and learner, and he is providing that opportunity all the time.”

Tilley:

“I think he has done a great job at collaborating, listening, making people feel heard as well.

“I think that his approach to leadership is really building bridges. And so I’m excited about what’s to come with the work that he is doing.”

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