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Over 13.6M awarded to promote adult education access in Michigan

MARQUETTE, Mich. (WLUC) – In an effort to improve access to adult education programs, 97 organizations have been awarded Adult Education programs and Family Literacy Act funding. According to a press release from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO), this represents an increase of nearly 13% in approved providers in comparison to last year.

Michigan residents will have improved access to adult education programs as 97 organizations have been awarded Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA) funding to support adult education and literacy programs throughout the state.

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Michigan residents will have improved access to adult education programs as 97 organizations have been awarded Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA) funding to support adult education and literacy programs throughout the state.

LEO awarded the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Title II funding, which totals more than 13.6 million for the 2020-2021 program year. This funding is part of a competitive grant application process and funds are awarded annually to state agencies by the U.S. Department of Education.

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This announcement coincides with National Adult

October 7, 2020

Bob Woodrick, West Michigan leader in diversity education, dies

GRAND RAPIDS, MI — A man who dedicated much of his life in West Michigan to combating what he called “the disease of racism” has died.

Bob Woodrick died Friday, Oct. 2 at the age of 88, according to a news release from Grand Rapids Community College. He leaves behind a legacy of promoting community conversations and education surrounding the topic of racism, the release states.

GRCC’s Diversity Learning Center, founded in 2006, was renamed the Bob and Aleicia Woodrick Center for Equity and Inclusion in 2016 to celebrate the couple’s work both on and off campus.

As a professional, Woodrick began his career in the family business, D&W Food Centers in Grand Rapids, and worked there his entire life, leaving only for college and the military, the release states.

Woodrick, according to a 1993 Grand Rapids Press story, started working for his father at the age of 14 —

October 4, 2020

Michigan education leaders find relief in 2021 budget

Michigan education leaders were bracing for tough financial decisions next year as the COVID-19 pandemic persists.

a close up of a sign: MLive file photo of Maple Street Magnet School for the Arts in Kalamazoo, Michigan on Tuesday, October 29, 2019.

© Emil Lippe | MLive.com/Emil Lippe | MLive.com/mlive.com/TNS
MLive file photo of Maple Street Magnet School for the Arts in Kalamazoo, Michigan on Tuesday, October 29, 2019.

But school boards and educators are now breathing a sigh of relief, with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer preparing to sign the 2021 budget approved by the legislature last week.

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Michigan’s education spending for K-12 schools, community colleges and universities clocks in at about $17.65 billion, with the School Aid Fund budget coming in at roughly $15.5 billion. The School Aid Fund budget increased by about $300 million compared to the 2019-20 budget.

Read more: 7 things you should know about Michigan’s new budget

“Based on what we were hearing months ago, how can we not be anything but pleased?” said Don Wotruba, executive director for the

October 1, 2020

Michigan Civil Rights commission calls for statewide education equity plan

The Michigan Civil Rights Commission is calling for the creation of a statewide educational equity plan to improve policies, accountability and opportunities for students.

The commission, charged with investigating alleged discrimination, issued a 62-page report on Wednesday after its year-long investigation into equity in K-12 education in Michigan. It met Wednesday to release the report, which can be found here.

“This Commission believes that an adequate education is the key to unlocking a lifetime of opportunities and also is a basic civil right,” said Stacie Clayton, the commission’s chair. “We learned during our education hearings that not all children receive the kind of education they deserve as their birthright.

“We urge policy makers, educators and other stakeholders across the state to view

October 1, 2020

Report finds ‘significant lack of equity’ in K-12 education, Michigan Civil Rights Commission says

The Michigan Civil Rights Commission released a 62-page report Wednesday, Sept. 30, describing inequities in Michigan’s K-12 education system. The report also detailed recommendations for policy makers and educators to implement to make achieving educational equity a priority in all Michigan schools.

The adoption of the report passed unanimously at a Wednesday Michigan Civil Rights Commission meeting.

Stacie Clayton, Chair of the Michigan Civil Rights Commission, said the report revealed a “significant lack of equity” in Michigan’s K-12 education system.

“This Commission believes that an adequate education is the key to unlocking a lifetime of opportunities and also is a basic civil right,” Clayton said. “We learned during our education hearings that not all children receive the kind of education they deserve as their birthright. We urge policy makers, educators and other stakeholders across the state to view this report as a roadmap they can follow to help schools achieve

September 30, 2020

Michigan Made ‘Hoglet’ Helps Students with Special Needs Focus

All of us learn in different ways and for kids who have a harder time focusing, learning from home can be especially Hoglet 03 challenging. That’s why Parker Lynch, a special education teacher, and creator of the Hoglet, brought a team together to create the prototype. The Hoglet is a mix between a fidget toy and a computer mouse.

It all started when Lynch, who grew up with ADHD was working kids with autism and discovered that fidget toys helped students focus. He tried finding a device that would help them but it didn’t exist. That’s when he created the Hoglet along with his team, most of whom are based in Traverse City.

“There’s a lot of scientific studies that show that fidgeting can actually help you focus it’s a good way to expel energy while keeping your, I guess like your sight on what the actual job is at hand,” says

September 29, 2020

Child Care Centers Provided Young Students A Safe Place To Learn Online. Michigan Won’t Cover The Cost.

From Chalkbeat Detroit:

By Koby Levin Sep 22, 2020, 6:31pm EDT

Two weeks into the school year, Monique Snyder had to tell a dozen working parents that they would have to find somewhere else for their children to learn online.

Like many child care providers in the Detroit area, Snyder has opened her centers to young K-12 students whose classrooms remained closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. But Snyder learned this month that the state won’t subsidize care during the school day for children from low-income families.

She told desperate parents that they would have to pay her out of pocket or find another place for their children to learn.

“It was horrible,” said Snyder, whose business is already in danger of closing due to the pandemic. “The biggest question they kept asking me was, ‘What am I supposed to do?’ And I literally did

September 28, 2020

Whitmer: 2021 Michigan Budget Focuses On Education, Health

MICHIGAN — The 2021 Michigan budget focuses on improving education, health programs and other key issues, such as expanding broadband internet services during a time of virtual learning across the state.

The budget — Whitmer’s second — will deliver on many of Whitmer’s signature priorities, including the Michigan Reconnect program for a tuition-free pathway for adults, funding for the Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies program to ensure women have the care they need for a healthy pregnancy, and expanding access to childcare for families, Whitmer’s office said in a news release.

“When we started the budget process in early February, nobody had an idea of how challenging the coming months would be, no knowledge of the devastating impacts that COVID-19 would have, including the impact to our state budget,” Whitmer said. “But Michigan is strong, and by working collaboratively with our partners in the Legislature we now have a budget I

September 24, 2020