The Michigan Legislature narrowly approved a $617 million bailout and restructuring of Detroit’s debt-ridden school district early Thursday, two years after the state spent money to help the city government emerge from bankruptcy.
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“My fear is that the serious lack of coordination related to school site planning decisions will continue”, said Sen.
The legislation goes to Gov. Rick Snyder for his expected signature.
“This work represents a fresh start with more money in the classrooms for Detroit’s students, career stability for Detroit’s teachers, and fiscal accountability for all MI taxpayers”, Snyder said in a statement early Thursday. “The good thing is that we have a school district, and that we have a school board”.
The state had been controlling the financially and academically weak Detroit Public Schools for seven years.
But the city’s teachers disagree.
Further, the school system is to be split into two districts, and the House plan earmarked $50 million less to effect the transition.
Education officials say the $617 million plan to fix Detroit’s ailing school system will affect tax payers across the state. The latter was endorsed by Governor Snyder himself and had a bi-partisan vote in the Senate as well as Democrat votes from the House (via WZZM 13).
While proponents of the legislation say that education at any price is better than no education at all, critics of the bill say that important points were sacrificed during debate.
That differs from a plan passed by the Senate in March that included the DEC, which would be appointed by the Detroit Mayor and have authority over some of the charter and public schools.
Some Republicans were reluctant to offer taxpayer support to the state’s largest school district that for decades has grappled with mismanagement and corruption, while others joined with Democrats in contending that the legislation allows the continued pitting of district schools and charters against each other. This has created a situation that some education professionals call the “Wild wild West of chartering”, says Martin. “Safety, maintenance, and staffing issues still remain the same”.
“It wastes $617 million trying to throw money at the problem without making long-term reforms”, said Tim Greimel (D-Auburn Hills).
“While the House plan voted on Wednesday night is inadequate, it is an improvement over the prior House plan that in that it provides more resources and has DPS employees keeping their jobs and union representation and returns DPS to an elected school board in January”.
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“Detroit is the first city in MI to have its teachers’ credentials reduced, eliminating the need for certification, despite the fact that 88 percent of our students are reading below grade level”, he said. Teachers staged a series of sickouts in the school year, shutting down schools to draw attention to the condition of Detroit’s crumbling school buildings and to the prospect that – because of the district’s financial crisis – teachers might not be paid for their work. A commission of state appointees will oversee the districts finances, similar to how it now reviews the citys budgeting as part of a $195 million state rescue in 2014.
