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MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST
July 8, 2008

Contents of this issue:
  • DPS sues former employees for allegedly issuing illicit contracts
  • GVSU decides not to reauthorize Kalamazoo charter school
  • Court of Appeals sides with schools in reporting cost case
  • Student expelled after attack on freshman
  • Plainwell schools add hours for struggling students
DPS SUES FORMER EMPLOYEES FOR ALLEGEDLY ISSUING ILLICIT CONTRACTS
DETROIT — The Detroit Public Schools has filed a lawsuit against one of its former department managers for allegedly issuing more than $45 million in unauthorized contracts, according to The Detroit News.

The lawsuit claims that Stephen Hill, who managed the DPS' Risk Management Office from 2001 to 2007, established these contracts by ignoring accounting procedures and creating a computer system separate from the district's network. According to The News, the lawsuit also alleges that Hill received kickbacks and that the contracts in question produced few services in return for the school district's payments.

Hill's assistant at the time is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit, according to The News. The News reported that no criminal charges had been filed at that time.

SOURCE:
The Detroit News, "Lawsuit: Former DPS employee created elaborate scheme to pay cronies," July 1, 2008
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080701/METRO/ 807010424/1409/METRO

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "Financial scandals exposed in Michigan school districts," Nov. 17, 2002
http://www.mackinac.org/4835

GVSU DECIDES NOT TO REAUTHORIZE KALAMAZOO CHARTER SCHOOL
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Grand Valley State University has declined to renew the charter of Kalamazoo's Advantage Academy, according to the Kalamazoo Gazette.

GVSU cites consistently poor performance and decreasing enrollment as reasons for closing the school. The Gazette reports that the school has met federal Annual Yearly Progress targets for the last two years, and that many believe it should stay open.

"I'd keep (the school) open," said Sharif Shakrani, co-director of Michigan State University's Center for Education Policy, according to the Gazette. "My analysis indicates they're making significant progress. ... Usually you would close a school when it's regressing, but this school is getting better, not worse." Shakrani developed an analysis of the school's progress that was "carefully reviewed" by the GVSU Charter School Office, according to Ed Richardson, the head of the office.

"Nothing in [that analysis] makes us think that our decision not to renew the contract was incorrect," Richardson said in an e-mailed statement, the Gazette reported.

SOURCE:
Kalamazoo Gazette, "Closing of Kalamazoo Advantage Academy a lesson in complexity of charter schools," July 4, 2008
http://blog.mlive.com/kzgazette/2008/07/closing_of_kalamazoo_advantage.html

FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Charter Schools Don't Need More Michigan Department of Education 'Oversight,'" Aug. 12, 2003
http://www.mackinac.org/5670

COURT OF APPEALS SIDES WITH SCHOOLS IN REPORTING COST CASE
LANSING, Mich. — The state Court of Appeals ruled that state officials have been shortchanging school districts by not compensating them for changes in reporting requirements, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The judges unanimously ruled that the governor and Legislature violated the Headlee amendment to the Michigan Constitution by requiring districts to report more performance information without additional funding. The reporting changes add between $50 million and $100 million to local districts' costs annually, according to a lawyer who represented taxpayers from 460 Michigan school districts in the case.

SOURCE:
Detroit Free Press, "Court: Mich. Schools forced to bear reporting costs," July 7, 2008
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080707/NEWS06/ 80707047

FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "The Headlee Amendment: Serving Michigan for 25 years" Aug. 4, 2003
http://www.mackinac.org/5574

STUDENT EXPELLED AFTER ATTACK ON FRESHMAN
WAYLAND, Mich. — A student from Wayland Union High School was expelled for her alleged role in a videotaped attack of a freshman student, according to the Kalamazoo Gazette.

The Gazette reported that another freshman girl apparently participated in the attack, but that according to the district's superintendent, the girl could not be disciplined by the district because she had moved away. The two girls, however, have reportedly been charged with aggravated assault and could face one year in a juvenile detention center and $1,000 in fines. Police have also investigated the student who held the camera during the attack, the Gazette reported.

The 14-year-old victim was cut and bruised. According to the Gazette, suspects told the police they did not agree with her support for gay rights.

SOURCE:
Kalamazoo Gazette, "Wayland student expelled after attack on freshman," July 1, 2008
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-29/1214923849 283690.xml&coll=7

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "The three P's of school safety: parents, prevention, and police," Nov. 1, 2000
http://www.educationreport.org/3134
PLAINWELL SCHOOLS ADD HOURS FOR STRUGGLING STUDENTS
PLAINWELL, Mich. — Dozens of Plainwell elementary school students who have trouble reading will come to school an hour early next fall, according to the Kalamazoo Gazette.

Previously, students with reading competency problems were removed from class during science or social studies to work in small groups with reading instructors.

"There are some who thought this was an issue because the students were missing other opportunities," Curriculum Director Bob Van Dis told the Gazette. "Plus, these topics help the students develop reading fluency."

SOURCE:
Kalamazoo Gazette, "Schools add hours for reading help," July 5, 2008
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-29/1215231616 149620.xml&coll=7

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest,"'Reading Recovery' is no such thing" April 25, 2001
http://www.educationreport.org/3430

MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST is a service of Michigan Education Report (http://www.educationreport.org), an online newspaper published by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy (http://www.mackinac.org), a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational institute.

Contact Managing Editor Sarah Grether at
mailto:med@educationreport.org

To subscribe or unsubscribe, go to
http://www.educationreport.org/pubs/mer/listserver.aspx?Source=MED

Related Topics: Education
Michigan Education Daily
Fri., November 21, 2008
"Bay County area schools should conduct school board elections jointly with general elections as a way to save money and have more representative voter turnout." >>
Thu., November 20, 2008
"Now three years old, the Kalamazoo Promise has had mixed results in its mission to send Kalamazoo Public Schools graduates to college." >>
Wed., November 19, 2008
"Grand Rapids and Holland public schools are reporting higher numbers of homeless students than last year and expect the figures to grow." >>
Tue., November 18, 2008
"Nineteen Detroit Public Schools teachers are running for election to leadership slots in the Detroit Federation of Teachers union on a school reform platform, according to The Detroit News. The teachers want to open their own charter school modeled after the Los Angeles Green Dot Schools." >>
Mon., November 17, 2008
"Teachers in Gaylord Community Schools have voted to replace the Michigan Educational Special Services Association with AmeraPlan as a third-party insurance administrator, saving the district about 25 percent on health care costs." >>
Sun., November 16, 2008
"A Spanish language teacher quit her job at Michigan Collegiate High School amid allegations that she had a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old male student." >>
Sat., November 15, 2008
"Wyandotte Public Schools is attracting attention statewide for its 90 percent pass rate among algebra II students." >>
User Comments
llsmith
Testing is not the answer. All it does is give the "teacher" a basis for determining a grade. And, we all know that grading and grades are circumspect. Rather, a more true measure of learning is when the learner (i.e., the "student" using traditional and aniquated terminology and stereotyping) wants to know more about a topic or issue. This expression of desire for more is an affirmation that the learner has mastered current concepts and material and now wants to move on. In this scenario no test nor grade is necessary. What should be necessary is for the provider (i.e., the "teacher") to have the next level or dimension of concepts and materials readily available to present and apply once the learner expresses the desire to move on.

What we need is a system that is designed to cater to this basal learning behavior and can be applied in real time. Take a look at the definitive treatment "Education in America -- What's to Be Done?" developed by Trigon-International. This commission report presents an end-to-end solution that is actionable and affordable. >>
samuel
$400 K, try $400 million >>
terrym2442
Thank you to Lorie Shane and Marcie Lipsitt for blowing off the cover, exposing one of Michigan's "dirty secrets."

As the parent of a child with special needs in Michigan, it's been an uphill battle since day one to get the APPROPRIATE services for my child. Sadly, the bar is held too low for our kids. Upon graduating, if the student is not capable of attending college, he/she is warehoused into post-secondary settings where formal academics are not offered. Perhaps if students had gotten proper academics when younger- taught by highly qualified teachers- many would have had the opportunity to move on and continue formal academics like their non-disabled peers, rather than be expected to dust shelves and bag groceries their whole lives.

Michigan's special eduation has and continues to fail our children.

>>
frick@mackinac.org
As a parent I see the value of a teacher with knowledge of both special ed methods and the subject matter. Do enough of them exist to go around? My guess is that many teachers who concentrated their schooling and training on special ed took fewer courses in subject matter (English, Mathematics, Science, etc.). There are limits on course load, number of years in college, and student finance.

As much as we want the best for every person, we are not going to have six teachers each an expert in their subject matter per one pupil. So in this world of limited resources, each person and our society have to decide how to use the resources we have. Hopefully a successful balance of flexibility and accountability can produce the desired results: educated children with the capacity to think and the ability to learn. >>
Carol
Michigan High School & the University deliver quality education to its
students & has maintained its standard with good caliber. The courses offered by the Michigan institutes are versatile and for future progress of the society and the students, it further enhances them to become excellent citizens!!
---------------------------
Carol
<a href="http://http://www.treatmentcenters.org/michigan">Michigan Treatment Centers</a>
>>
drgrenan
Thank you for your comments. I would be honored and proud to go to any school district or meeting to stand up for your/our children!! Just EMail me and I will be there or call me anytime at 616-8474282
Thank You, Dr Jack Grenan Educator and Cancer Survivor >>
ilifflij
Parents and teachers have not had a voice. The waivers used have allowed administrators of various Michigan schools to plunk in 20 - 25 students in a classroom of students with learning disabilities. As a special education teacher, I find it very difficult to meet the individual learning objectives of that many students. >>
rlboogren
This article presents excellent information. As the parent of a child with a disability I advocate for my son. Currently, there is no one to speak for all the children with disabilities in Michigan. There is no transparency of government. The position of State Superintendent is a dictatorship with the power to make all the decisions. As a parent, I cannot voice my concerns by voting. >>
Ferndale Eagle
Ferndale High School in Ferndale, Michigan succeeded in correcting the mistaken reporting of the Johns Hopkins University report that had included it as a "dropout factory" with poor "promoting power." The University researchers have acknowledged that Ferndale High School does not belong in this category and removed the school from the list because of the school district's high outward mobility (more students move out than move in during high school.). The high school has a three-year promoting power ration of 77% rather than the 50% reported in the Associated Press in October 2007, with the Class of 2006 having a 91% promoting power. Please visit Johns Hopkins' website for more clarification to see the "Schools Removed from the List of Weak Promoting Power High Schools: http://web.jhu.edu/CSOS/images/Removed_from_List_5_14_08.pdf .

Also, visit www.ferndaleschools.org for info about the school district. >>
From Mackinac Blog
So you're not going to admit an anti-MESSA bias?

*wink* >>