LANSING (WKZO-AM) — The Snyder administration is threatening to close two Kalamazoo elementary schools for low test scores, along with 36 other schools across the state, and the State Reform Office is being blasted by state legislators and educators alike and parents may be next in line to complain.
Eight other schools in the region are on the list of schools that have been in the bottom 5 percent for the last three years, including three in Benton Harbor.
Three Battle Creek Schools were removed from the priority list.
Twenty-four of the schools are in Detroit, many of which have been under state control for years.
The two schools in Kalamazoo are the historic Woodward School for Technology and Research, which was just recently renovated at a cost of $1.3 million, and the Washington Writers’ Academy, which was recently rebuilt at a cost of $10.7 million. Both serve poor neighborhoods.
Three other Elementary schools in Kalamazoo, Hillside, Woods Lake and Milwood, were taken off the priority list.
That tells Rep. Jon Hoadley, D-Kalamazoo, that the problem can’t be management.
“School closures in Kalamazoo should be off the table,” Hoadley said in a statement. “We can all agree that every child deserves a quality education. Simply closing schools does nothing to address poverty in and out of the classroom, which studies show has a significant impact on a student’s test scores. It was announced last year that our schools were underfunded by some $1,200 per pupil. $1,200 per child per year could be used on everything from books to wrap-around services which combat the effects of poverty. Closing schools will not make the problem go away; it simply shifts its location. Our students deserve better, and it is our responsibility to help provide that for them.”
Hoadley proposes as an alternative to closing a state-appointed CEO, when many of the schools on the list have already been under state control for years, makes no sense.
Rep. Kim LaSata, R-Bainbridge Township, issued the following statement after three Benton Harbor area schools, rhe Dream Academy, the International Academy at Hull and STEAM Academy at MLK, were placed on the closure list: “I am deeply concerned about the future of these schools, and understand that parents and students join me in this apprehension. I have been and remain in close contact with the School Reform Office and local school officials so we can reach the best outcome for the students and families in the school district, who deserve a quality education.”
Three schools were also taken off the list in Battle Creek.
There will be a 45-day review period and each school will be evaluated independently for alternatives to closure. The SRO concedes that it may not be possible or practical to move the children to other schools.
Hoadley hopes they will be seeking public comment on the proposal and let the community weigh in before any decisions are made.
Supt. Dr. Michael Rice issued this statement: “The release from the state’s School Reform Office (SRO) contained good news in that the Milwood Magnet School: A Center for Math, Science, and Technology, Hillside Middle School, and Woods Lake Elementary: A Magnet School for the Arts have been released from SRO oversight.”
He added, “It also indicated that we have continued work to do at Washington Writers’ Academy and The Woodward School for Technology and Research, which have shown and continue to show improvement. The SRO’s final determination of next steps for these schools has not been announced.”
