Chastity Pratt

Bipartisan legislation is intended to better identify areas where teachers are struggling and get them the training and support they need to improve. Historically, nearly all teachers have received high evaluations even though Michigan is among the bottom tier of states on national tests.

Michigan currently uses a confusing, color-coded system for grading the performance of its public schools. Some lawmakers want the state to convert to an A-F grading system that they say is easier for parents and educators to understand.

Gov. Rick Snyder appoints New York’s Richard Ravitch to head a nine-member commission that will oversee Detroit’s finances post-bankruptcy.

Woody Allen once famously said that “80 percent of success is just showing up.” But Dems would probably settle for half that as they seek to unseat an incumbent governor.

Students from Minnesota to Florida are learning more. Is Michigan ready to do something about it?

Bridge sat down with Kati Haycock, founder of the Education Trust in Washington, D.C., to talk about reversing Michigan’s decline and what schools can do for low-income kids when parents aren’t in the game.

Tough standards, targeted funding and a difficult test that every student must pass have elevated Massachusetts to the top of the class.

Charters in the Bay State are fulfilling the promise of bringing innovation and performance to public education. The state keeps a tight rein on who can open charters and sets high standards for schools to remain open.

A federal court case could set the stage for the repeal of Obamacare tax credits, and drastically raise health-care costs for 250,000 Michigan residents. A final decision is likely a year away.

There are many cities that can be improved with planning that turns public spaces into the heart of those communities. Michigan’s “placemaking” chief explains how.

Southeast Michigan is poised to get a share of $1.3 billion in U.S. economic development grants. Lisa Baragar Katz, executive director of the Workforce Intelligence Network for Southeastern Michigan tells Bridge how the money should be spent.

Michigan has one of the most aggressive receivership laws in the nation, giving emergency managers extraordinary power in distressed communities, but leaving hard feelings in their wake. Other states have had a smoother ride by involving elected leaders in turnaround plans, rather than shuttling them to the sideline.

Benton Harbor’s first emergency manager sidelined elected officials and a public war soon followed. EMs have authority to make the hard cuts that elected leaders won’t, but entrenched politics are harder to ax.

The state-created board may be larger than necessary, but it has the funding to run its own numbers, rather than relying on the city to turn over information.

Seniors graduating this month from high schools in the state reform school district complain of missing or inaccurate transcripts. Some are being told days before commencement they don’t have the required classes to graduate.

Detroit Public Schools missed a deadline, and now must bow out of the preschool program for low-income children, imperiling nearly 1,000 seats for 4-year-olds.

Michigan residents demand the state do something to improve schools, align training to the jobs available, and make college more affordable for students and their families.

As election season heats up, lawmakers recognize that the state school funding formula needs an overhaul. But long-term changes to the Proposal A funding system will likely not be addressed. This leaves plenty of middle-class districts to struggle.

State-funded adequacy studies are hailed by education groups and Democrats as a way to measure the true cost of educating Michigan students. But Republicans deride these studies as an effort to wring more money from taxpayers.

Charter and school-choice proponents want all districts to get an equal share of state funding. The state board and leading education groups say that rural, urban and low-income districts often need more resources to provide a quality education.