A controversial figure in the national school reform debate is applauding recent efforts to transform public education in Michigan.
As The Michigan Public Radio Network’s Jake Neher tells us, Michelle Rhee (ree) says she thinks the state could set the standard for education reform in the country.
Rhee says things like state takeovers of failing public schools and a proposal to tie teachers’ pay to their performance in the classroom are steps in the right direction.
“These are some of the innovations and the initiatives that I think are going to lead the rest of the country for the next few years,” she says.
Rhee was speaking in front of business leaders and politicians on Mackinac Island.
She also advocated school voucher programs that allow students to use taxpayer dollars to pay private school tuition. Governor Rick Snyder has faced criticism lately for a secret work group that was discussing a voucher-like program for lower-cost schools. The group included some of Snyder’s top aides, but he says he wasn’t directly involved.