Dear Community Member,

Decades of disinvestment in the Detroit Public Schools and top-down policies—like the emergency manager law—have created the current crisis in our city’s public schools. These policies have been forced on our communities, creating ill feeling among natural allies and driving them to point fingers at one another. These misguided and misdirected interventions have worsened racial and economic inequity in our schools, our neighborhoods and our city.
As students, parents, educators, community members and labor leaders, we have come together to form the Detroit Education Justice Coalition in order to claim our right to a high-quality education.  We believe we have a shared responsibility to reject policies that harm youth of color or their families. We seek to collaborate and take action to ensure that every child and every family has access to a high-quality neighborhood public school—regardless of race, socio-economic status or ZIP code.

We know that improving struggling schools and neighborhoods requires comprehensive and coordinated reform, not isolated, unproven interventions. After surveying educators, holding town hall forums and engaging members of communities across Detroit, we have developed the following proposals for change. We believe the implementation of these proposals can put us on the path toward healing and restored hope in our city. We invite you to join us in the fight for the schools that ALL of our children deserve.

In solidarity,
Detroit Education Justice Coalition

    Listening Session Registration

    As part of an exciting campaign to lift up public education as a key issue in the 2018 elections, the Detroit Education Justice Coalition and 482Forward are hosting listening sessions across the state with parents, students, educators, and residents.  The goal of the session is to hear what residents of Macomb and Oakland Counties want to see in our public education system.

    These listening sessions will culminate in the creation of a statewide platform for public schools by Spring 2018.

    Below are the currently scheduled sessions:
    • Oakland County: Sunday, March 11, 4:30-6pm at Birmingham Congregational Church, 1000 Cranbrook Rd, Bloomfield Hills MI 48304
    • Macomb County: Thursday, March 15, 6-7:30pm at Leadership Macomb, 14460 Lakeside Circle, Suite 220, Sterling Heights MI 48313
    Please sign up on our homepage or below if you can't attend a scheduled session but want to be kept informed of new dates and other related events.

The Detroit Education Justice Coalition is a partnership of:

  • 482Forward
  • ACLU Michigan
    • American Federation of Teachers (AFT) - Michigan
  • Detroit Federation of Teachers (DFT)
  • Good Jobs Now
  • MOSES
  • Mothering Justice
  • NAACP - Detroit Branch

Over the course of 3 months, leaders from each organization created the following platform. We then asked candidates for DPSCD School Board to commit to many of the items. Over the coming months and years, we will organize to hold them accountable to their promises.

Full, Fair Funding and Democratically Accountable Governance
Detroit schools have been shortchanged for too long. Our students and educators are expected to do more with less, and there are few opportunities for community members, parents and educators to provide input on policies that affect our neighborhood public schools. Now is the time to invest in our schools.

Our students, educators and community members deserve:
• Properly resourced and debt-free public schools;
• A democratically elected and empowered Detroit school board;
• A cap on for-profit charter schools and an end to efforts to privatize school services; and
• Meaningful opportunities for parents, community members and educators to help shape policies and decisions about our schools, including financial systems, evaluations, planning and accountability.
Manageable Class Sizes/ Caseloads
The current teacher shortage in the Detroit Public Schools has reached crisis level. Students and teachers struggle in overcrowded classrooms, and some classrooms lack a teacher altogether. Teachers are being forced to teach subjects outside of their certification areas. Both students and teachers deserve smaller classes to enable better, individualized instruction and improved relationships between teachers and students.

Our students, educators and community members deserve:
• Fully staffed classrooms, especially in hard-to-staff subject areas; and
• Thoughtful school staffing that is based on an assessment of needs.
Schools that Educate and Support the Whole Child
All children deserve to attend safe, supportive schools. Students, especially those who are most disadvantaged, need holistic supports—including services to meet their social, health and emotional needs—to help them reach their full potential and achieve their dreams.

Our students, educators and community members deserve:
• Safe, well-maintained school buildings that are tested, evaluated and monitored regularly for air and water quality;
• Essential classroom resources and supplies, including textbooks, technology and basic materials;
• A rich curriculum that includes instruction in art, music, dance and physical education; and
• Adequate in-school student supports like counselors, social workers, librarians and health workers (nurses).
Welcoming, Safe and Inclusive Schools
Great public schools are ones that provide safe, welcoming and caring learning environments for all children, including those with special needs. Schools that underserve the most vulnerable students and treat parents as intruders cannot succeed in creating strong learning environments. Our neighborhood public schools must strive to provide an environment where students, parents, educators and residents feel welcome and respected as valued members of the school community.

Our students, educators and community members deserve:
• A voice in school policies, procedures and decisions;
• School discipline policies that are enforced  fairly and create supportive learning environments for all students; and
• Improved school appearance and increased efforts to create safe school grounds.
Supported Educators
Ensuring that all classrooms are staffed with well-prepared, well-supported educators is key to creating successful learning environments and positive outcomes for students.

Our students, educators and community members deserve:
• Quality orientation and ongoing support for new teachers;
• Mentoring and relevant, research-based professional development designed by teachers;
• Competitive salaries for all educators; and
• Additional qualified support staff.
Culturally Relevant Curriculum
To provide a world-class education for all children, our schools must ensure that all curricula are culturally inclusive, accurate and relevant. Detroit is a racially, linguistically, culturally, economically and ethnically diverse city, and our students deserve a rich curriculum that reflects that diversity.

Our students, educators and community members deserve:
• Greater opportunities for parent participation in school activities;
• A curriculum that is centered around students’ culture and experiences; and
• Opportunities to build cross- cultural respect.
Equitable Special Education Services
Our public schools have a legal obligation to provide appropriate educational services for children with special needs and learning disabilities. Insufficient funding and ongoing school closures have undermined the quality and availability of services provided to our special education students. Special education students, just like general education students, need high-quality learning opportunities and academic support to fulfill their potential.

Our students, educators and community members deserve:
• Fully resourced special education services;
• Proper training for all educators, including those who teach students with special needs; and
• Proper training and support for parents, students and schools on special education laws.