July 15, 2020 By PAULA HERBART/President – Michigan Education Association A lawsuit filed last week against U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos created a case name that captures a long-standing feeling among educators and friends of public education. Michigan v. DeVos. After years of Betsy DeVos and her family pushing an extreme, anti-public education agenda across our state […]
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel on Tuesday announced a lawsuit has been filed challenging a rule issued by U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos which rerouted millions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief money to private schools. Nessel is partnering with California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead a coalition of six attorneys general in a […]
EAST LANSING — The following statement can be attributed to MEA President Paula Herbart following the announcement of the “Michigan v. DeVos” lawsuit: “Once again, our state leaders are standing up for Michigan public school students and their families. This lawsuit, filed by our state’s outstanding Attorney General Dana Nessel, will help ensure that Betsy DeVos’ […]
To safely reopen for in-person learning next fall, schools across the state will be required to enact one of a range of safety plans based on the COVID-19 threat level their particular region is facing at a given time, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced on Tuesday. The MI Safe Schools Return to School Roadmap resulted from the […]
EAST LANSING — Following more than 15,000 survey responses from educators and discussions about the needs of both students and school employees, today MEA announced three key priorities the state’s largest education union feels must be fully addressed as we look toward safely returning to school buildings this fall. As our mission indicates, we believe […]
The deadline for completing a 25-minute Read by Grade Three (RBG3) survey worth 5 SCECHs for current K-8 teachers who participate has been extended to June 30 by our partners at the Education Policy Innovation Collaborative (EPIC) at MSU. The researchers have also added a set of questions regarding how educators responded as schools suspended […]
By Brenda Ortega MEA Voice Editor For MEA member Lisa Watkins, the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement speaks to important and personal issues for her as a mother, grandmother, and associate preschool teacher in Ypsilanti—concerns that she believes every educator should seek to know and address. “Educators are helping raise black lives,” said the mother […]
June 17, 2020 By PAULA HERBART/President – Michigan Education Association One of the most important decisions our state will make in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic is when and how to safely reopen our public schools. MEA recently completed a landmark survey on COVID-19’s impact on public education, with more than 15,000 responses from […]
If the economic damage wrought by the coronavirus pandemic goes unchecked, the nation stands to lose 1.89 million education jobs over the next three years, according to a new analysis by the National Education Association. Stated another way, we could lose one-fifth of the workforce that powers public schools and higher education institutions. Those cuts […]
Michigan has sued U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, joining 17 other states in a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Education’s final rule that violates Title IX and weakens protections for sexual assault and harassment victims. Attorney General Dana Nessel, with THE support and coordination of Governor Gretchen Whitmer, joined the fight against the […]
