From the Superintendent's Office

by Tom Watkins, Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction

As Michigan’s students go back to school, we have much to celebrate and reasons for optimism. More than ever before, communities are working together with educators to fulfill the State Board of Education’s Strategic Goal: To attain substantial and meaningful improvement in academic achievement for ALL students with primary emphasis on high priority schools and students.

Where we have struggling schools, we very often find struggling communities and struggling families. That’s why the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) is working hard to find new and creative ways to help schools work together with communities to raise academic achievement.

This year, the MDE will work with the Family Independence Agency to open 20 additional Family Resource Centers in high priority schools. This brings the total to 39 Family Resource Centers statewide, where staff now channel state and local community services directly to families and help clear obstacles to teaching and learning. Family Resource Centers also aim to decrease absenteeism and behavior problems in schools and increase parental involvement.

I’m excited about that last goal, because we know Michigan will struggle to meet the goals of No Child Left Behind if parents are not equal partners with schools. The good news is that Michigan teachers want to partner with parents, according to this year’s Your Child Parent Teacher Survey (see “Did You Know”).

Now in its second year, the MDE’s Great Parents, Great Start program is helping communities reach out to families of Michigan’s youngest children—those from birth through age five. Working through the state’s intermediate school districts (ISDs), Great Parents, Great Start provides child development information, learning opportunities, and access to needed community services. Thanks to the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators (MAISA) and the Macomb ISD, parents can soon link to community services at www.migreatparents.org. Each ISD is invited to post information at the site regarding local activities, health services, parenting programs, and more.

Communities have so much to offer schools. Sometimes we forget, however, that schools—and the students who attend them—have so much to give back. This year, 17 Michigan school districts will share over $1.4 million in community service grants for initiatives designed to motivate expelled or suspended students to complete their high school education. These federal funds will help schools connect students with opportunities to provide meaningful community service. In the process, we believe the programs will help students avoid negative behavior and re-engage in school. I encourage you to share your ideas. At the MDE, we are committed to teamwork, and that means listening to the voices of our constituents.

For example, this summer the MDE Social Studies Task Force invited public comment on how we might improve student performance on the social studies portion of the Michigan Education Assessment Program (MEAP). Earlier, the Joint Task Force on Creativity, Arts and Cultural Education released its report outlining stakeholder ideas. Visit our Web site at www.michigan.gov/mde to learn more about these and other MDE initiatives to integrate communities and schools.

By talking and working together, communities and schools can increase academic achievement for ALL Michigan students.

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