Contents of this issue:
- Novi DVD promotes district's high school
- Students cram Northville Public Schools
- Bullock Creek custodians take cuts to avoid contracting
- Study finds metro Detroit teachers highest paid
- Grosse Pointe Catholic school receives national honor
NOVI DVD PROMOTES DISTRICT'S HIGH SCHOOL
NOVI, Mich. — Novi Public Schools is looking to retain its eighth
graders with a new DVD to attract parents and students to its
high school, according to the Novi News.
Superintendent Peter Dion believes this promotional tool is
important to keep students in the district.
"Parents have choices on where to send their kids ... and we want
to make sure they know what our high school has to offer," he
told the News.
The district produced about 500 DVDs, one for each family with an
eighth-grade student. Dion believes this could end up being one
of the contributing factors to keeping students in the Novi
schools. He notes that parents aren't going to send their kids to
their assigned public school by default anymore, according to the
News, especially with competition from other sources, such as
private schools and charter public schools.
"We need to be aggressive about (promoting ourselves)," Dion told
the News. "I have a competing school right across Wixom Road
(Detroit Catholic Central) that I have to pay attention to and
they're making it more convenient, just in terms of distance. So
I want to make sure eighth graders know what we have to offer in
our high school."
SOURCE:
Novi News, "District DVD Promotes High School, Aims for Eighth
Graders," Feb. 1, 2007
http://hometownlife.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070201/NEWS13/702010659/1030
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Schools offer incentives for
enrollment increases," Jan. 30, 2007
https://www.educationreport.org/8191
Michigan Education Digest, "Ypsilanti schools compete for Ann
Arbor students," Jan. 16, 2007
https://www.educationreport.org/8174
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "School Choice in Michigan: A
Primer for Freedom in Education: Lack of Incentives Produces Poor
Results and Exacerbates Problems," July 16, 1999
https://www.mackinac.org/2049
STUDENTS CRAM NORTHVILLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS
DETROIT — As many metro Detroit school districts are seeing
enrollment losses, Northville Public Schools is having trouble
finding room for all of its students, according to the Detroit
Free Press.
The Northville area is one of the fastest growing regions in the
state, and all of the district's six elementary schools are at or
over capacity. Demographers estimate a continued increase in
enrollment, and the district is exploring options to deal with
the situation, the Free Press reported.
"It's a pleasant problem to have," Superintendent Leonard R. Rezmierski told the Free Press. "We've always been expanding."
Last February, residents voted down two bond proposals for, among
other projects, a new elementary school. Rezmierski believes
presenting another proposal is out of the question and is looking
at alternative methods. The district is considering increasing
class sizes and building portable classrooms, according to the
Free Press.
"Class size is going to have to go up," Elizabeth Kwiecinski, the
mother of three children in the Northville schools, told the Free
Press. "I think the teachers and students will be flexible."
SOURCE:
Detroit Free Press, "Students jam school district," Feb. 4, 2007
https://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070204/NEWS02/702040552/1004
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Children flee Detroit schools,"
Jan. 23, 2007
https://www.educationreport.org/8179
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "The Six Habits of Fiscally
Responsible Public School Districts," Dec. 3, 2002
https://www.mackinac.org/4891
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Fewer Students = More Money?"
Oct. 8, 2004
https://www.mackinac.org/6856
BULLOCK CREEK CUSTODIANS TAKE CUTS TO AVOID CONTRACTING
MIDLAND, Mich. — The Bullock Creek Schools decided against
contracting for its janitorial services after its custodial and
maintenance employees union agreed to staffing cuts and an
insurance change, according to the Midland Daily News.
The district cut two custodial full-time equivalency positions
and one FTE maintenance position. The maintenance position, which
dealt primarily with mowing, will be contracted out at an hourly
rate. These decisions will result in savings between $140,000 and
$150,000, the Daily News reported.
Bullock Creek also will save approximately $60,000 by switching
health insurance and could save more if employees take advantage
of early retirement or resignation options, according to the
Daily News.
Superintendent John Hill believes these cuts were an issue of
reducing expenditures.
"It was never our desire to look at outsourcing because of
dissatisfaction with the custodians," he told the Daily News. "It
was always a cost containment issue in recognition of the
financial need the district faces."
SOURCE:
Midland Daily News, "Creek says no to replacing custodians,"
Jan. 30, 2007
https://www.ourmidland.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17782631&BRD=2289&PAG=461& dept_id=472542&rfi=6
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Brandywine schools pleased with new
janitorial service," Jan. 16, 2007
https://www.educationreport.org/8174
Michigan Education Report, "Beyond brooms, burgers and buses,"
Nov. 21, 2006
https://www.educationreport.org/8032
Michigan Education Report, "Competitive contracting grows despite
myths," Sept. 6, 2006
https://www.educationreport.org/7900
STUDY FINDS METRO DETROIT TEACHERS HIGHEST PAID
DETROIT — A study released by The Manhattan Institute for Policy
Research found that teachers in metro Detroit have the highest
pay of 66 metropolitan areas nationwide, according to The Detroit
News.
The study found that metro Detroit teachers made an average of
$47.28 an hour, compared to a national average of $34.06, The
News reported.
The study also examined the correlation between teacher pay and
graduation rates and found the metro Detroit graduation rate to
be 67 percent. No positive relationship was found between higher
salaries and graduation rates, according to The News.
"What we found is there is no relation to higher relative teacher
pay and higher student achievement," said Jay Greene, senior
fellow at the Manhattan Institute, according to The News.
The American Federation of Teachers-Michigan disagrees. Spokeswoman Beth Thoreson said the union believes incentives have
more to do with performance than salaries alone.
"To bring in the very best possible teachers, you have to have
incentives," she told The News. "In this country, incentives look
like dollars."
SOURCE:
The Detroit News, "Study: Metro Detroit teachers earn most,"
Jan. 31, 2007
https://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070131/METRO/701310409/1006/METRO01
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Grand Rapids teachers agree to
incentive-based pay," June 27, 2006
https://www.educationreport.org/7798
Michigan Education Report, "Incentives for Teacher Performance in
Government Schools: An Idea Whose Time Has Come," May 30, 2002
https://www.educationreport.org/4373
Michigan Education Report, "Teacher Pay and Teacher Quality: How
Do They Relate?" Apr. 16, 1999
https://www.educationreport.org/1681
GROSSE POINTE CATHOLIC SCHOOL RECEIVES NATIONAL HONOR
GROSSE POINTE, Mich. — St. Paul on the Lake Catholic School,
located in Grosse Pointe Farms, is the only school in Michigan
this year to receive a national Blue Ribbon award, according to
The Detroit News.
The U.S. Department of Education gave out 200 of these awards to
schools that model high standards and achievement while also
promoting the accountability of staff and students.
Previous Michigan winners include Royal Oak Shrine Catholic
School in 2005 and Guardian Angels Catholic School in Clawson in
2003. The Blue Ribbon can be won by any public or private school
that meets the proper criteria.
SOURCE:
The Detroit News, "Grosse Pointe Farms school to receive national
recognition for academic success," Feb. 1, 2007
https://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007702010434
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "The School Choice Movement's
Greatest Failure," Aug. 7, 2006
https://www.mackinac.org/7859
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Catholic Schools and the
Common Good," Apr. 28, 2005
https://www.mackinac.org/7069
MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST is a service of Michigan Education
Report (
https://www.educationreport.org),
a quarterly newspaper
with a circulation of approximately 150,000 published by the
Mackinac Center for Public Policy (
https://www.mackinac.org),
a
private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational
institute.
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