Education

On May 3, Lansing residents will vote on a proposed $120-million millage designed to upgrade the city school district. We learn more about the Lansing Pathways Promise from superintendent Yvonne Caamal Canul.

When Michigan legislators return from a Spring break, they’ll continue discussions on a financial rescue of the beleaguered Detroit Public Schools. The state Senate and House have differing proposals. We talk with a key figure in the Senate measure, Republican Goeff Hansen, about what lies ahead.

The State Board of Education is developing guidelines to make schools safer and more supportive for LGBTQ students, but the voluntary guidance is generating a backlash from GOP legislators who say it undermines parental rights and could compromise student safety.

The Michigan Senate has passed a $720-million bailout for the troubled Detroit Public Schools. We talk with Skillman Foundation CEO Tonya Allen and MSU assistant professor Sarah Reckhow about what lies ahead for education in Detroit.

A team of students at Williamston High School is building an electronic device that helps people with autism or neurological impairments open their lockers. We look at Williamston’s Project HANDL.

As families deal with Flint’s ongoing water crisis, the work being done in the schools where they send their children might be more important than ever.

The Michigan State University College of Education has had a long relationship with Flint Community Schools, and that effort was boosted last week by a $2 million grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

Current State talks with Judge Steven Rhodes, the new transition manager of the public school system in Detroit.

New legislation has been proposed that would restrict the use of seclusion and restraint of Michigan students to emergency situations only. We speak with the sponsor of one of the bills, State Representative Frank Liberati, and with Elmer Cerano, executive director of Michigan Protection and Advocacy Services.

We speak with a mid-Michigan art teacher about Youth Art Month about ways to be involved, even if your school has nixed arts education.

TEDxMSU will be back on Wednesday. Scott Pohl talks with organizer Zeria Cummings and speaker Maggie Hermanson.

Architecture has a major diversity problem. Out of all the licensed professionals in the U.S., less than five percent identify as black or Latino. A new collaboration between the University of Michigan and Detroit Public Schools is trying to change that. We learn more about the Architecture Prep Program from Current State’s April Van Buren.

Nearly 20 years ago, the Michigan legislature established Michigan Virtual University to promote online education. We learn more from MVU president and CEO Jamey Fitzpatrick.

Republicans in Michigan’s House of Representatives have created an aggressive plan for fixing Detroit Public Schools. Critics complain that it weakens collective bargaining and delays a fully-elected school board. We talk with a charter school advocate who says the measures are worth a close look.

The potential bankruptcy of Detroit Public Schools is dominating education headlines, but Michigan officials are trying to look beyond the current emergency and put the state on the track to becoming a top 10 education state by 2026. Current State talks to the president of the State Board of Education, John Austin, about what it will take to do that.

We’ve talked about the importance of literacy on Current State before, but there’s a relatively new organization we haven’t yet heard from. Energizing Education was created to ensure all children in Jackson County are reading at or above grade level by the 4th grade. We speak with Program Manager Kriss Giannetti about the creative ways they help kids become strong readers.