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Female legislators silenced on House floor

Posted on 06/15/12 at 1:57pm

The business of the last day of session was sidetracked when Rep. Lisa Brown (D-West Bloomfield) and Rep. Barb Byrum (D-Onondaga) were barred from speaking on the House floor because of their opposition to an anti-abortion bill. The two were singled out for their language and actions that Republicans claimed did not “maintain the decorum of the House of Representatives.”

Higher education budget rewards some, punishes others

Posted on 06/04/12 at 12:05pm

Higher education will get a 3 percent increase over last year, but there are plenty of strings attached—some of them reflecting legislators’ bias on social issues and a dislike for university autonomy.

Middle class no winner in budget agreement

Posted on 05/24/12 at 2:58pm

Gov. Snyder, Senate Majority Leader Randy, and House Speaker Jase Bolger reached a target budget agreement that looks more like an election year promotion to win votes rather than a sincere attempt to repair the damage tax breaks to corporate CEOs have done to public education and the middle class. 

 

Kindergarten start date pushed back

Posted on 05/15/12 at 5:56pm

Under SB 315-316 unanimously passed by the Senate this week, some 4-year olds will have to wait to start kindergarten, unless their parents file a request with a school district.

Senate K-12 budget is more of the same: CEO’s not kids

Posted on 04/26/12 at 7:07pm

What a difference a day makes in the Legislature when it comes to the education budget!

On Wednesday, the Senate passed a $12.7 billion K-12 budget on a 25-13 vote that made changes to the Appropriations Committee version in school aid and funding for standardized testing.

Constitutional amendment would require full disclosure from universities

Posted on 04/25/12 at 8:44pm

What looks suspiciously like more retribution for universities, Rep. Tom McMillin (R-Rochester Hills), Chair of the House Oversight, Ethics and Reform Committee, is proposing a constitutional amendment (HJR PP)requiring state public universities to annually report every expenditure they make. Universities would then have to create an online report showing what was bought from whom and professors’ salaries.

Senators get an earful on SB 1040

Posted on 04/12/12 at 8:51am

The Senate Appropriations Retirement Subcommittee heard six hours of testimony yesterday on SB 1040 from a variety of people—current school employees, retired teachers,  community college employees, a student teacher, and a concerned parent. 

Court of Appeals will make final ruling on immediate effect lawsuit

Posted on 04/10/12 at 1:16pm

In the next phase of the continuing House battle over the immediate effect of recent legislation, the Court of Appeals issued a stay on an Ingham Circuit Court decision ordering House Republicans to stop ignoring Democrats’ demands for roll call votes on immediate effect.

Ciloski named Wayne State's "Outstanding Educator of the Year"

Posted on 04/04/12 at 5:50pm

Frank Ciloski, on special assignment in MEA's Professional Development/Human Rights Department, was recently named the "Outstanding Educator of the Year" by Wayne State University for his contributions to education. Ciloski was nominated by faculty in Wayne State's College of Education.

Is getting rid of the MEAP a mistake?

Posted on 03/29/12 at 3:20pm

This week, the Senate K-12 Appropriations Subcommittee finally listened to education experts who have repeatedly said that the MEAP is not an accurate measure of student growth and pulled funding for it in favor of a new computer-adaptive test that would more accurately measure student growth. The new test is expected to cost $18 million as opposed to the $27 million for the MEAP. However, many education experts aren’t so sure this is a wise move.

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