A new Education Trust-Midwest report gives charter school authorizers low grades, but a gap in the state’s charter school law may prevent them from being held accountable.
Standing With Our DREAMers The following excerpt is from a September 7, 2017 blog post by Amber Arellano. Read the full post here. This week, as millions of American students headed back to school, hundreds of thousands of young people – the “DREAMers” – learned the Trump administration would no longer protect…
State's M-STEP Implementation Shows Major Progress Last week, Michigan students finished the third round of annual state assessments using the Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress (M-STEP). While data from the assessment will not be publicly available until later this summer, one thing is clear: Michigan has…
School Chiefs on Critical Assurances for School Choice Last week, a bipartisan group of reform-minded district and state superintendents, with extensive experience with charter schools and other forms of school choice, issued a statement on any proposal for the expansion of school choice, such as the Trump Administration’s…
by Brian McVicar, MLive Changing Michigan's standardized test could "undermine" a new school accountability system proposed by the Michigan Department of Education, according to an analysis released Wednesday by Education Trust-Midwest, a nonpartisan education policy and research group. The Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress is the…
by Cheryl Corpus High academic standards are needed now more than ever. Growing up in a rural, blue-collar town here in Michigan, I often struggled to understand my place in the community. Being half-Filipino—my mom came to the United States from the Philippines when she was 18…
October 10, 2016 Members of the Michigan State Board of Education, As you consider plans to comply with the requirements of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), our organizations wish to convey our strong opposition to replacing the Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress (M-STEP). Once approved…
by Amber Arellano and Ken Whipple Michigan is facing a historic moment for the state and its children, a moment when our citizens and leaders must choose whether we will make Michigan a top education state again, or whether we will continue to suffer a dramatic demise. In little more…
by Rachel Weick, Grand Rapids Business Journal Michigan’s statewide charter school system’s report card remains low compared to other leading academic performing states. In its latest report, Accountability for All: 2016, The Education Trust-Midwest has proposed implementing the first statewide performance-based accountability system to hold Michigan…
by Amber Arellano Behind the Detroit schools crisis lies a troubling charter school sector. As Detroit Public Schools' teacher sick-outs and mounting debt capture the attention of press around the world, it might be easy to conclude money alone will solve the Motor City's educational woes. The truth…
by Valentina Korkes, Education Post Being from Michigan, generally, is a wonderful thing. Great people, Great Lakes, you get the picture. When it’s not so wonderful, however, is when you have to explain to other Michiganders that, in some other states, people actually like charter schools. There are states…
