Talent & Education

The governor asks Superintendent Michael Rice to change trainings under fire from conservatives for suggesting teachers don’t need to tell parents about children’s gender orientation.

Conservative parents and advocates are filling Lansing meetings of the state board to read excerpts from school library books with sexual themes. They want bans or restrictions on explicit material, but school books are selected at the local level.

Since Sunday, there’s been chaos in East Lansing over the status of MSU President Samuel Stanley Jr. We break down the issues that have some trustees wanting Stanley gone. Less clear is whether his critics hold a majority view on the board.

President Samuel Stanley Jr., reportedly faces a resign-or-be-fired demand from the university board. Faculty leaders plan to meet Tuesday and speak with Stanley. But the board chair said Monday that removing Stanley would be 'misguided.'

The tentative agreement put faculty back in the classroom Monday after the work action disrupted classes last week.

Some districts restrict cellphone use. Others warn parents about the dangers of social media. And one legislator proposed banning all Michigan students from using phones during the school day.

The university said the faculty union’s strike is causing harm to students, while the union said the lawsuit “does not move us forward one inch.”

The union representing faculty members is at odds with the administration in negotiations over salary and healthcare benefits, with each side blaming the other for canceled classes.

The state’s lowest-performing schools were the hardest hit during the disruption of the pandemic. But the state’s partnership program, which offers more resources and support to these schools, likely helped curb learning loss, an MSU study found.

Scores in math and English/Language Arts were mostly down this year compared to before the pandemic on the Michigan standardized test known as M-STEP. The results are likely to heavily impact education spending priorities.

There is a steep increase this year in the percentage of third-graders behind in reading skills — a troubling trend that was far worse for students who spent significant time learning remotely when they were in second grade during the pandemic.

In perhaps the most comprehensive portrait of academic loss brought on by COVID, math and reading scores for the nation’s 9-year-olds suffered generational declines between 2020 and 2022. The losses spanned races and income levels, though the lowest-performing students suffered the largest declines.

Bills that would restrict how schools teach about racism and other highly-charged topics have yet to pass. But there are signs that pushback from some parents and interest groups are making an impact in classrooms.

State lawmakers approved funding to ensure students in grades 8 through 12 develop a deeper understanding of the state’s 12 federally recognized tribes, tribal governance, the Trail of Tears and the history of abuse at federally funded boarding schools.

Districts across the state are relaxing mask requirements, routine COVID testing, social distancing rules, and 10-day quarantines this back-to-school season.

Saying she was ‘appalled’ by the possible closure of an Ottawa County library, romance novelist Nora Roberts steps in with a $50,000 donation and a willingness to send more. Donations now exceed next year’s budget shortfall for the library.

Michigan students leave college with more debt than the U.S. average. Experts have suggestions for ways to lessen the load.

As classes begin for the fall, new state policies reflect the push to get more trained teachers in classrooms, more food in school cafeterias and safer conditions on school buses.

Michigan has about 1.4 million student loan borrowers. Borrowers with federal loans who have incomes below $125,000 will get up $10,000 in loans canceled; up to $20,000 if they had Pell Grants.

Remedial courses are one of the main reasons vulnerable students drop out. The courses cost money and provide students with no credit toward graduation, discouraging many students from completing their degrees.