The city of Detroit, despite the best efforts of its teachers and its union, has come under attack by those who want to dismantle its school system and create a New Orleans-like charter school system. This is a tragic story in the making, and you can read some of the still-remaining positives in a piece in the New York Times.
“It’s hard to understand why any teacher who could leave Detroit stays, but they do. Kim Kyff, with 22 years’ experience, is one of the lead teachers at Palmer Park, the elementary and middle school that opened last fall. In 2007 she was the Michigan teacher of the year. She has had offers from suburban schools, but stays because she believes that in Detroit, she has a better shot at being a beacon of hope.
“Last summer, she went door to door in the neighborhood to explain to parents the plans for the new school, including classes not seen in most Detroit elementary and middle schools: French and Spanish, art and music. “Most were skeptical,” she said. Even so, Ms. Kyff thanked them and then tried the house next door.”
But all the good work may go in vain as there are those who seek to sacrifice public education by creating an additional 41 charter schools:
“We want to create a marketplace of schools,” said Robert Bobb, the district’s emergency financial manager. “It enables us to design a new DPS at a level that is sustainable given our current financial legacy deficit situation along with an opportunity to improve our cash flow.”
Read more in the Wall Street Journal.