FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News from Progress Michigan
August 10, 2017
Contact: Hugh Madden, hugh@progressmichigan.org
Progress Michigan Demands Explanation from ABC CEO Jimmy Greene
LANSING—Progress Michigan is calling on Associated Builders and Contractors of Greater Michigan CEO Jimmy Greene to answer once and for all whether his organization is funneling funds from taxpayer-funded schools to ABC through the group’s affiliated construction academies.
It was recently reported by the Detroit News that the Department of Education will not penalize school districts who paid for ABC’s program, which is neither a state-approved dual enrollment provider nor a state-approved Career Technical Education (CTE) vendor.
Yet Progress Michigan has obtained records indicating the Greater Michigan Construction Academy in Midland, which is connected to ABC, billed Merrill High School, a publicly-funded school, more than $13,000 for “tuition” expenses related to its “CTE” program last fall.
“It’s a shame that Michigan’s already financially strapped public schools have been caught up in this sham by ABC, and it’s time for Jimmy Greene to come clean,” said Lonnie Scott, executive director for Progress Michigan. “The longest running and most successful skilled trades training programs in the state, which are run by Labor organizations, have been graduating students for decades without asking for tax-payer funded handouts. Schools, teachers, students and parents deserve answers for why a privately-run organization thinks it’s okay to siphon off public dollars that could otherwise go to public school teachers who could just as well be preparing our kids for a career in the skilled trades.”
“Michigan’s youth and their parents’ hard-earned tax dollars deserve better than ABC’s underhanded approach to fundraising. If Greene can’t truthfully explain what his organizations do or how they’re paid for, maybe it’s time they are shut down,’” Scott said.
Supporting documents can be found here.
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