Education
Bill naming part of M-10 for Detroit educator awaits Snyder’s pen
A bill that would rename a portion of the John C. Lodge Freeway (M-10) in Detroit after legendary educator Violet T. Lewis overwhelmingly cleared the Michigan House on Thursday. The vote was 101-8 and the bill now heads to Gov. Rick Snyder’s desk. The Advance reported that Senate Bill 1137, sponsored by state Sen. Ian […]
Snyder signs bill allowing non-certified teachers in classrooms
Gov. Rick Snyder earlier today signed a bill that will allow those with professional career expertise to substitute teach in grades 9-12 without a teaching certificate. “This legislation will help schools fill teacher shortages in programs that offer high-demand career skills so that our students can be prepared for a 21st century economy,” said Snyder, […]
Senate shifts $200M from schools for roads, environmental cleanup
Updated, 7:20 p.m. The Michigan Senate today passed legislation that would divert sales tax dollars that traditionally go to the School Aid Fund (SAF) to fix roads and do environmental cleanups. The House is expected to take action on what is supposed to be the last day of legislative action in Lansing. After the vote, […]
A-F education bill makes the grade in Senate
Updated, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 19 The GOP-led Michigan Senate this evening in a 21-17 vote passed House Bill 5526, a measure that would require state government to give each public school A-F letter grades in areas related to student performance. The vote on the bill, sponsored by state Rep. Tim Kelly (R-Saginaw Twp.), came after […]
Detroit schools’ chief: GOP lawmakers treat us like ‘3rd class citizens’
Dr. Nikolai Vitti, Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) general superintendent, says that the GOP plan to create a statewide school grading system has had no input from administrators and teachers. For Detroit educators, Vitti said, it’s an all-too familiar story. “All stakeholders, even in suburban and rural districts, now know what it is […]
Some Lame Duck bills now likely dead after missing key deadline
The Michigan Legislature is on track to make the 2018 Lame Duck period the busiest in the body’s history, taking up legislation on issues ranging from changes to the new redistricting commission called for in Proposal 2 to deer sterilization permits. But several bills introduced in the Michigan House and Senate are now considered dead. […]
While you were sleeping: GOP-led House narrowly passes watered-down A-F school grading bill
After scrambling for votes all day, Republicans won a new A-F letter grade bill for public schools, but jettisoned a new education oversight commission that would have weakened Gov.-elect Gretchen Whitmer’s power. The GOP-led House approved House Bill 5526, sponsored by Rep. Tim Kelly (R-Saginaw Twp.), on a mostly party-line 56-53 vote just after 3 […]
Education unions rally at Capitol, Michigan House stays in session past midnight
As the Michigan Legislature considered a slew of Republican-sponsored education and labor bills, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Michigan and the Michigan Education Association rallied on the grounds of the state Capitol Wednesday evening and later lobbied lawmakers inside the building. “It’s a partisan power grab that tells Michigan voters, ‘We don’t care what […]
Meekhof pushes bill requiring regular union certification
A bill targeting Michigan’s public sector unions could come up for a vote this week during the frantic year-end Lame Duck session of the Legislature. Sponsored by long-time union foe Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof (R-West Olive), Senate Bill 1260 would require union members to vote every two years, beginning in 2022, on whether to re-certify […]
Bill honoring Detroit educator clears Michigan Senate
A bill that would rename a portion of the John C. Lodge Freeway (M-10) in Detroit after legendary educator Violet T. Lewis last week unanimously cleared the Michigan Senate. The measure, Senate Bill 1137 sponsored by state Sen. Ian Conyers (D-Detroit), is now being considered in the House of Representatives. In 1929, Lewis, an African […]
Educators converging on Lansing to protest Lame Duck bills this week
Marcus Walton said he didn’t knock doors this summer and fall to elect Democrats, only to have Republicans shove through an aggressive Lame Duck agenda that hurts teachers and students. “We lobbied and fought to get [Gov-Elect] Gretchen [Whitmer] and the Democratic slate elected and we accomplished that goal,” said Walton, a Detroit Public Schools […]
GOP bills aimed at public sector unions moving through Legislature
Two GOP bills aimed at public sector union employees in Michigan passed out of a House committee hearing this morning.