Bad Candidates, Bad Messaging and Bad Leadership

By Harrison Blackmond, DFER Michigan State Director   A recent article in the Detroit Free Press reported that Michigan Democrats and independents that generally vote for Democrats, blame the party’s dismal performance in the 2010 election on “bad candidates, bad messaging and leadership.”  The poll by Dennis Denno, described as “a longtime Democratic Party activist,”

RELEASE: MICHIGAN DEMOCRATS FOR EDUCATION REFORM AND MICHIGAN STATE REPRESENTATIVE TIM MELTON RESPOND TO GOVERNOR AND DPS EDUCATION REFORM PLANS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   June 20, 2011   Contact: Harrison Blackmond (248) 229-4157 Harrison@dfer.org     MICHIGAN DEMOCRATS FOR EDUCATION REFORM AND MICHIGAN STATE REPRESENTATIVE TIM MELTON RESPOND TO GOVERNOR AND DPS EDUCATION REFORM PLANS TO RESTRUCTURE FAILING MICHIGAN SCHOOLS                              

A Chicken in Every Pot, a Highly Effective Teacher in Every Classroom!

  Is putting a highly effective teacher in every classroom as elusive as eliminating hunger by putting a chicken in every pot? So far the evidence seems to suggest that it is. Many have argued that the problem of low student achievement is related more to students’ social conditions and lack of parental involvement and

TO CHARTER, OR NOT TO CHARTER, THAT IS THE QUESTION!

  By Harrison Blackmond, DFER Michigan State Director   With apologies to Billy Shakespeare and Hamlet, that is still the question charter school advocates continue to face even though charter schools were approved by the Michigan state legislature and signed by the governor in 1993! For almost twenty years the idea of charter schools in

Where Is Michigan's Education Reform Leadership Going to Come From?

By Harrison Blackmond, State Director, Michigan Democrats for Education Reform Aside from his reference to changes in the emergency financial manager’s act, there was precious little said about education in Governor Rick Snyder’s first and highly anticipated state of the state speech last Wednesday night. There was no grand vision about how he would reform

Community Organizing as an Education Reform Strategy

  By Harrison Blackmond, DFER Michigan State Director   Parents, community leaders, and school choice advocacy groups march on Florida state capitol  March, 2010   A few weeks ago, a fellow board member of a coed, college prep catholic high school in Detroit  expressed concerns to me about the quality of education children in Detroit

Michigan Hopes Reforms Will Win Up To $400M In School Aid

(From The Detroit News, January 19, 2010) By KAREN BOUFFARD Lansing — Michigan filed its application for federal funds to launch education reform with strong support from school districts but a dearth of union backing. Michigan sent Monday its request for a slice of the $4.35 billion in Race to the Top money with hopes

Fed Cash Spurs Michigan Lawmakers On Education Reforms

(From The Detroit News, December 21, 2009) By KAREN BOUFFARD Lansing — A monumental education reform package designed to win federal funding is headed to the governor’s desk and will dramatically change K-12 education in Michigan. Bills passed by state lawmakers Saturday link teacher pay and job security to student achievement, allow for state takeovers

Lobbying Group Opens An Outpost In Michigan

(From Gotham Schools, December 16, 2009) By ANNA PHILLIPS The lobbying group Democrats for Education Reform got its start in New York, but is spreading fast. Its latest branch is in Michigan, where it’s going by MDFER (a bit of a mouthful). With chapters in five states, the organization is halfway to its goal of