Michigan Education Assocation

Dropouts: One is Too Many

Michigan Education Association — Tue, 06 May 2008 09:32:55 EDT

Let's set aside for a moment the universally-accepted fact that the choice to drop out of high school is a terrible decision that has a lifelong negative impact on a student.

If we can't dedicate ourselves to solving the dropout crisis for that reason alone, let’s look at the money.

Southfield school board fires 350 employees, fuels foreclosure crisis

Michigan Education Association — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:31:46 EDT

According to a Detroit News' database of Metro Detroit home foreclosures, 1,342 homes in the city of Southfield have been subject of foreclosure filings since January 2006.

Unfortunately, the Southfield Board of Education voted 5-2 Tuesday night to increase that number by as many as 350.

Threat to medical privacy

Michigan Education Association — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:08:05 EDT

Your employer ordered you to tell them about your wife having cancer. How would you respond?

School employees in the Southwest Michigan community of Lawton recently were faced with that question. Based on requirements put in place by last fall's ill-conceived Senate Bill 418 (which, among other things, requires schools to get competitive bids for health insurance), these employees were ordered to complete an extensive survey about their and their family's health history.

Reading critical to academic, economic success

Michigan Education Association — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 22:34:39 EST

March 2 would have been the 104th birthday of the legendary Dr. Seuss. In honor of that occasion, today we celebrate Read Across America Day, with thousands of National Education Association members working together to ensure our students embrace the excitement of reading.

But it’s not just about cats in hats or green eggs and ham. Ensuring our students experience the thrill and enjoyment of reading is essential for them to understand the importance reading plays in their life.

Generation “Debt”

Michigan Education Association — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:36:49 EST

In January’s issue of the NEA Today magazine, there’s a disturbing story about the rising debt levels of college graduates. The story states:

“Today, two-thirds of four-year college graduates leave with student loan debt, compared with less than a third just 10 years ago, according to the State Public Interest Research Group’s Higher Education Project. And they carry twice as much debt as they did 10 years ago, too.”

Smaller schools only one part of the solution

Michigan Education Association — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 20:17:49 EST

The concept of "small schools" sounds like a key part of the public education debate for 2008, but it's clear from the governor's State of the State address that we need to do more than just shrink schools to help both our students and our economy.

Teacher salaries losing ground

Michigan Education Association — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 19:48:51 EST

Even setting aside the ridiculous increase in gas prices, everything is more expensive today than it was 10 years ago. What you would give up over that 10 year period if your salary decreased by $5,000?

That's the question the average Michigan teacher has been asking themselves for the past decade, according to an annual NEA report on teacher salary.