... The parents are Ashkenazi, originating from Europe, and are in a long-running battle to have their daughters educated separately from Sephardi girls originating from north Africa and the Middle East. ...
... The reason for wanting separate education, the parents claim, is not racism but a desire to remove their daughters from the influence of those they consider less strict in their religious observance. Watching TV at home, having access to the internet, and a laxer dress code among the Sephardi ultra-Orthodox have been cited.
The ultra-Orthodox school in the illegal West Bank settlement of Immanuel segregated the girls, a move that was subject to a legal challenge resulting in an order to reintegrate. The parents of the 43 girls refused to send them back to mixed classes, leading to sentences for contempt of court.
Underlying the case is the rejection of what the ultra-Orthodox community sees as state interference in their religious practice and life. "We don't give our girls all the knowledge that there is in the world," said Esther Bark, 50, a mother of seven daughters watching the male-only demonstration today. "We shelter them, and that's why they need a sheltered school. We can't mix a whole assortment of girls in one school." [Italics mine.]
As police helicopters throbbed over the mass of black-hatted demonstrators, Aaron Shuv, 28, said: "We only follow the rules of God. The Torah [scriptures] is above all government."
The issue had nothing to do with discrimination, said Dubin, a father of two. "No court in the world should have the right to tell me how to educate my sons or daughters. The court went against our rabbis."
Jerusalem's ultra-Orthodox community has swollen to a third of the Jewish population, assisted by a high birthrate and departure of thousands of secular residents. The secular population is increasingly resentful that its taxes support welfare benefits for the ultra-Orthodox, who reject paid work in favour of religious study. ...
So move to Saudi Arabia, you parasitical, racist, sexist morons!
... It took a just a brief meeting with an InfoLady for 60-year-old Nahar Hossain to finally identify the pest that destroyed his rice fields year after year. "She matched the picture of my crop with the one on her TV [netbook] and recommended a certain pesticide. I haven't had problems since," says Hossain, who had spent a lot of time and money seeking government help to no avail.
The success of the InfoLadies is making the failure of the state more noticeable. "We have corruption and political interference in every sector," says Gullal Singha, a state executive officer of Sagatha sub-district. Sagatha is severely affected by soil erosion and is home to the poorest of the poor. "Even the ultra-poor entitled for food relief are segregated as Bangladesh Nationalist Party poor or Awami League poor," says Aziz Mostafa, an elected representative of a local civic body.
This explains why thousands of Bangladeshis have embraced InfoLadies and their laptops, which are making lives easier and arguably better. "In most cases I'm able to provide an instant solution using my database," says Luich, who is educated to secondary school level. For skin infections, she sends the patient's picture to her organisation's call centre in Dhaka, where experts help with diagnosis and advise hospital referral if required.
"In many places there are no doctors for miles, and fatalities for easily curable diseases are very high. An InfoLady can save lives," says Shahadat Hossain of NGO Udayan Sabolombi Shangstha. Government statistics show Bangladesh has only three doctors per 10,000 people. ...
Ta much, dear MSiegel
The success of the InfoLadies is making the failure of the state more noticeable. "We have corruption and political interference in every sector," says Gullal Singha, a state executive officer of Sagatha sub-district. Sagatha is severely affected by soil erosion and is home to the poorest of the poor. "Even the ultra-poor entitled for food relief are segregated as Bangladesh Nationalist Party poor or Awami League poor," says Aziz Mostafa, an elected representative of a local civic body.
This explains why thousands of Bangladeshis have embraced InfoLadies and their laptops, which are making lives easier and arguably better. "In most cases I'm able to provide an instant solution using my database," says Luich, who is educated to secondary school level. For skin infections, she sends the patient's picture to her organisation's call centre in Dhaka, where experts help with diagnosis and advise hospital referral if required.
"In many places there are no doctors for miles, and fatalities for easily curable diseases are very high. An InfoLady can save lives," says Shahadat Hossain of NGO Udayan Sabolombi Shangstha. Government statistics show Bangladesh has only three doctors per 10,000 people. ...
Ta much, dear MSiegel
March 28, 2010
DPS: Scam cost $57M
FBI investigates ex-risk manager; district sues to recover money
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
A former department chief at Detroit Public Schools and his assistant used secret offices and their own computer system to improperly divert more than $57 million in school funds to vendors who provided little, if anything, in return, according to sworn records reviewed by the Free Press.
Documents in a Wayne County Circuit Court lawsuit brought by DPS allege that Stephen Hill of Detroit -- director of DPS risk management from 2001-05 -- received luxury vehicles and other kickbacks. Some of the vendors who benefitted were friends or associates of Hill's or relatives of Hill's assistant, Christina Polk-Osumah of Detroit, court records allege.
When Hill left the district in September 2005, he received a champagne-and-tenderloin farewell bash that cost the impoverished school system $40,000, according to the suit.
The FBI now is investigating the alleged fraud scheme.
Robert Bobb, the district's emergency financial manager, said in a statement that the case is another example of how "DPS has been a place where people use the district as their personal banker and where there has been a cesspool of corruption, and in cases such as this one, both national corporations and local individuals took advantage of Detroit Public Schools."
Hill could not be reached for comment. His former attorney denied that Hill acted improperly and said he will be vindicated. ...
DPS: Scam cost $57M
FBI investigates ex-risk manager; district sues to recover money
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
A former department chief at Detroit Public Schools and his assistant used secret offices and their own computer system to improperly divert more than $57 million in school funds to vendors who provided little, if anything, in return, according to sworn records reviewed by the Free Press.
Documents in a Wayne County Circuit Court lawsuit brought by DPS allege that Stephen Hill of Detroit -- director of DPS risk management from 2001-05 -- received luxury vehicles and other kickbacks. Some of the vendors who benefitted were friends or associates of Hill's or relatives of Hill's assistant, Christina Polk-Osumah of Detroit, court records allege.
When Hill left the district in September 2005, he received a champagne-and-tenderloin farewell bash that cost the impoverished school system $40,000, according to the suit.
The FBI now is investigating the alleged fraud scheme.
Robert Bobb, the district's emergency financial manager, said in a statement that the case is another example of how "DPS has been a place where people use the district as their personal banker and where there has been a cesspool of corruption, and in cases such as this one, both national corporations and local individuals took advantage of Detroit Public Schools."
Hill could not be reached for comment. His former attorney denied that Hill acted improperly and said he will be vindicated. ...
March 31, 2010
$57-MILLION ALLEGATIONS
Ex-official facing DPS suit loses job offer
Ill. county rescinds proposal for top spot after troubles found
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
On Sunday, the Free Press reported that a former Detroit schools official was accused of running a $57-million scam and accepting kickbacks while at Detroit Public Schools.
On Monday, Cook County, which covers Chicago and its environs, announced that the former official, Stephen Hill, had been offered a job as that county's director of risk management.
Oops.
When the Free Press called to inquire Tuesday, Cook County officials -- hours later -- confirmed the job offer. But they said the offer was rescinded after someone performed a Google search, which turned up the Free Press article, and other material on the DPS lawsuit against Hill, set for trial this summer. ...
$57-MILLION ALLEGATIONS
Ex-official facing DPS suit loses job offer
Ill. county rescinds proposal for top spot after troubles found
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
On Sunday, the Free Press reported that a former Detroit schools official was accused of running a $57-million scam and accepting kickbacks while at Detroit Public Schools.
On Monday, Cook County, which covers Chicago and its environs, announced that the former official, Stephen Hill, had been offered a job as that county's director of risk management.
Oops.
When the Free Press called to inquire Tuesday, Cook County officials -- hours later -- confirmed the job offer. But they said the offer was rescinded after someone performed a Google search, which turned up the Free Press article, and other material on the DPS lawsuit against Hill, set for trial this summer. ...
Conservative textbook proposal ‘disturbing’
Posted on Mar 24, 2010 by Lindsey Roberts in Opinion, World Issues
Ah, Texas. I don’t know much about the state other than everything is bigger there and it seems to have its own way of doing things. “The Lone Star” seems to be a perfectly fitting nickname for a state that thinks it is a country. So the fact that Texas’ conservative right wing wants to rewrite its textbooks with a Bible-Belt slant doesn’t really surprise me. And why should we care if Texas wants to remove biographies on George Washington and Abraham Lincoln from its textbooks? What if I told you 80 percent of America’s textbooks come from Texas?
Houston, we have a problem. ...
Posted on Mar 24, 2010 by Lindsey Roberts in Opinion, World Issues
Ah, Texas. I don’t know much about the state other than everything is bigger there and it seems to have its own way of doing things. “The Lone Star” seems to be a perfectly fitting nickname for a state that thinks it is a country. So the fact that Texas’ conservative right wing wants to rewrite its textbooks with a Bible-Belt slant doesn’t really surprise me. And why should we care if Texas wants to remove biographies on George Washington and Abraham Lincoln from its textbooks? What if I told you 80 percent of America’s textbooks come from Texas?
Houston, we have a problem. ...
Last Updated: March 04. 2010 6:07PM
Laura Berman
Does DPS leader's writing send wrong message?
The president of the Detroit school board, Otis Mathis, is waging a legal battle to steer the academic future of 90,000 children, in the nation's lowest-achieving big city district.
He also acknowledges he has difficulty composing a coherent English sentence. Here's a sample from an e-mail he sent to friends and supporters on Sunday night, uncorrected for errors of spelling, grammar, punctuation and usage. It begins:
If you saw Sunday's Free Press that shown Robert Bobb the emergency financial manager for Detroit Public Schools, move Mark Twain to Boynton which have three times the number seats then students and was one of the reason's he gave for closing school to many empty seats.
The rest of the e-mail, and others that Mathis has written, demonstrate what one of his school board colleagues describes, carefully, as "his communication issues." But if these deficits have limited Mathis, as he admits they have, they have not stopped him from graduating from high school and college. In January, his peers elected him president by a 10-1 vote over Tyrone Winfrey, a University of Michigan academic officer.
"I'm a horrible writer. I know that," says Mathis, 56, a lifelong resident of southwest Detroit. His difficulties with language were spotted as early as fourth grade, when he was placed in special education classes. His college degree was held up for more than a decade because he repeatedly failed an English proficiency exam then required for graduation at Wayne State University. ...
Here's another mass e-mail from Mathis, from Aug. 11, 2009:
Do DPS control the Foundation or outside group? If an outside group control the foundation, then what is DPS Board row with selection of is director? Our we mixing DPS and None DPS row's, and who is the watch dog? ...
Laura Berman
Does DPS leader's writing send wrong message?
The president of the Detroit school board, Otis Mathis, is waging a legal battle to steer the academic future of 90,000 children, in the nation's lowest-achieving big city district.
He also acknowledges he has difficulty composing a coherent English sentence. Here's a sample from an e-mail he sent to friends and supporters on Sunday night, uncorrected for errors of spelling, grammar, punctuation and usage. It begins:
If you saw Sunday's Free Press that shown Robert Bobb the emergency financial manager for Detroit Public Schools, move Mark Twain to Boynton which have three times the number seats then students and was one of the reason's he gave for closing school to many empty seats.
The rest of the e-mail, and others that Mathis has written, demonstrate what one of his school board colleagues describes, carefully, as "his communication issues." But if these deficits have limited Mathis, as he admits they have, they have not stopped him from graduating from high school and college. In January, his peers elected him president by a 10-1 vote over Tyrone Winfrey, a University of Michigan academic officer.
"I'm a horrible writer. I know that," says Mathis, 56, a lifelong resident of southwest Detroit. His difficulties with language were spotted as early as fourth grade, when he was placed in special education classes. His college degree was held up for more than a decade because he repeatedly failed an English proficiency exam then required for graduation at Wayne State University. ...
Here's another mass e-mail from Mathis, from Aug. 11, 2009:
Do DPS control the Foundation or outside group? If an outside group control the foundation, then what is DPS Board row with selection of is director? Our we mixing DPS and None DPS row's, and who is the watch dog? ...
This is a rich suburb, folks.
Teachers who join the BNP could be banished from the classroom, Ed Balls indicated today as he announced a review of rules against racism in schools.
The Schools Secretary said he considered membership of the organisation “fundamentally incompatible with the values and ethos of teaching profession”.
Mr Balls, who has been under pressure from teaching unions to impose tighter restrictions on racism in schools, has so far stopped short of following the example of the police and prison service with an outright ban on BNP membership for teachers.
But today Mr Balls said he was no longer convinced that existing rules on promoting racial equality were enough. He has asked a former Chief Inspector of Schools, Maurice Smith, to look at strengthening them. ...
Unfamiliar? Saying that 'bnp' stands for 'british nazi party' is close enough.
The Schools Secretary said he considered membership of the organisation “fundamentally incompatible with the values and ethos of teaching profession”.
Mr Balls, who has been under pressure from teaching unions to impose tighter restrictions on racism in schools, has so far stopped short of following the example of the police and prison service with an outright ban on BNP membership for teachers.
But today Mr Balls said he was no longer convinced that existing rules on promoting racial equality were enough. He has asked a former Chief Inspector of Schools, Maurice Smith, to look at strengthening them. ...
Unfamiliar? Saying that 'bnp' stands for 'british nazi party' is close enough.
Bobb to announce criminal charges in DPS probe
BY BEN SCHMITT • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • August 11, 2009
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy issued a press release today stating she and Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb will announce criminal charges Wednesday stemming from an investigation into the public schools. ...
BY BEN SCHMITT • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • August 11, 2009
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy issued a press release today stating she and Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb will announce criminal charges Wednesday stemming from an investigation into the public schools. ...
A couple of audits of Detroit Public Schools uncovered rampant financial waste, Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb announced today.
One audit of health-care workers revealed that there were 411 people, some of them deceased, who were on the payrolls even though they were not eligible, the district said. Removing the 411 people will save about $2.1 million, according to the district.
Another audit of the district’s Office of Public Safety uncovered wasted equipment that was not being used –- including 160 BlackBerry phones, 97 two-way phones, 1,872 master locks, 132 safety kits, 50 handheld radios, and 13 printers. Eleven motorcycles were not being used.
“It’s now time to bring all of this BS to a standstill,” Bobb said at a news conference today. “This school system cannot be viewed as a personal bank.” ...
One audit of health-care workers revealed that there were 411 people, some of them deceased, who were on the payrolls even though they were not eligible, the district said. Removing the 411 people will save about $2.1 million, according to the district.
Another audit of the district’s Office of Public Safety uncovered wasted equipment that was not being used –- including 160 BlackBerry phones, 97 two-way phones, 1,872 master locks, 132 safety kits, 50 handheld radios, and 13 printers. Eleven motorcycles were not being used.
“It’s now time to bring all of this BS to a standstill,” Bobb said at a news conference today. “This school system cannot be viewed as a personal bank.” ...
... There's no doubt that history education needs a boost in Texas.
According to test results, one-third of students think the Magna Carta was signed by the Pilgrims on the Mayflower and 40% believe Lincoln's 1863 emancipation proclamation was made nearly 90 years earlier at the constitutional convention.
According to test results, one-third of students think the Magna Carta was signed by the Pilgrims on the Mayflower and 40% believe Lincoln's 1863 emancipation proclamation was made nearly 90 years earlier at the constitutional convention.
Scores of ex-bankers and City workers have been rejected from the fast-track teacher training scheme because they aren’t up to scratch.
Academics running the first courses — which condense the time to qualify from twelve months to six — only need to find 40 trainees by September. But they are worried that they may not be able to get even that number and say most of the candidates will need far more training before they can go into the classroom.
Gordon Brown announced the scheme as a way to get “talented career-switchers” to re-train in record time when the credit crunch made thousands of bankers redundant. Critics argued that the course was too short to prepare for the harsh reality of the classroom. ...
Academics running the first courses — which condense the time to qualify from twelve months to six — only need to find 40 trainees by September. But they are worried that they may not be able to get even that number and say most of the candidates will need far more training before they can go into the classroom.
Gordon Brown announced the scheme as a way to get “talented career-switchers” to re-train in record time when the credit crunch made thousands of bankers redundant. Critics argued that the course was too short to prepare for the harsh reality of the classroom. ...
... Mike Cox's opinion was issued in response to a request from state Superintendent Michael Flanagan after Detroit’s latest pupil count came in at 93,457.
Cox said the plain language of state law reserves first class status to districts over 100,000 students. Detroit, until recently, was the only district to meet that criterion. ...
Cox said the plain language of state law reserves first class status to districts over 100,000 students. Detroit, until recently, was the only district to meet that criterion. ...
DPS audit shows missing funds, 'sloppy bookkeeping'
BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER
June 3, 2009
Detroit Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb released audit findings this morning that show sloppy bookkeeping at 189 of 194 school buildings, some of which could result in criminal charges. The tax-exempt schools also may have lost about $1.7 million that was wrongly paid in sales taxes, a meeting with a vendor revealed this morning.
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The audits showed loans made to school officials using school funds, missing funds from activities, school funds diverted to personal accounts, principals writing and signing checks, untimely deposits and money taken home by staff.
Three cases involving high schools and two involving elementary schools have been turned over to the district’s inspector general, former FBI official John Bell.
“We have a reason to believe some of them probably will” be turned over to the prosecutor’s office, Bobb said.
“How do you justify making loans to school officials?” he said.
Over a period of 21 days, 35 auditors investigated 194 schools that handle $2.5 million to $4 million in funds. Only five had “entirely proper bookkeeping,” he said. ...
BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER
June 3, 2009
Detroit Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb released audit findings this morning that show sloppy bookkeeping at 189 of 194 school buildings, some of which could result in criminal charges. The tax-exempt schools also may have lost about $1.7 million that was wrongly paid in sales taxes, a meeting with a vendor revealed this morning.
Advertisement
The audits showed loans made to school officials using school funds, missing funds from activities, school funds diverted to personal accounts, principals writing and signing checks, untimely deposits and money taken home by staff.
Three cases involving high schools and two involving elementary schools have been turned over to the district’s inspector general, former FBI official John Bell.
“We have a reason to believe some of them probably will” be turned over to the prosecutor’s office, Bobb said.
“How do you justify making loans to school officials?” he said.
Over a period of 21 days, 35 auditors investigated 194 schools that handle $2.5 million to $4 million in funds. Only five had “entirely proper bookkeeping,” he said. ...
Mystery philanthropist donates $75m to US universities
Buzz surrounding donor heightened by the fact that nearly all colleges receiving money are run by women
Ed Pilkington in New York
Tuesday 28 April 2009
A new parlour game has entered the normally restrained world of US philanthropy: guessing the identity of a mystery donor who is lavishing millions of dollars on colleges with the proviso that her or his identity never be known.
The buzz around the anonymous donations - currently numbering 14 worth a total of about $75m ($51m) - has been heightened by the fact that all but one of the universities that have been singled out for largesse are government funded, with none of the advantages of the Ivy League.
Even more intriguingly, all the recipient colleges are led by presidents who are women. The money started hitting the universities about seven weeks ago and there has been a steady stream of offers since then. The pattern has been for a faceless intermediary - often a bank or financial house - to contact the college administrators, offer the donation on behalf of the nameless client, and then send cheques or money orders for millions of dollars.
The most fortunate individual recipient so far has been Michigan State University, which was given $10m. Ten colleges have each been handed $5m or more, with the stipulation that most of the money should go towards financial grants helping poor students, particularly women and minorities, to reap the benefits of higher education.
At first the gifts were welcomed as one-off windfalls that could not have arrived at a better time amid falling income as a result of the economic downturn. But as the number of cheques mounted, the link between them became impossible to ignore. ...
Buzz surrounding donor heightened by the fact that nearly all colleges receiving money are run by women
Ed Pilkington in New York
Tuesday 28 April 2009
A new parlour game has entered the normally restrained world of US philanthropy: guessing the identity of a mystery donor who is lavishing millions of dollars on colleges with the proviso that her or his identity never be known.
The buzz around the anonymous donations - currently numbering 14 worth a total of about $75m ($51m) - has been heightened by the fact that all but one of the universities that have been singled out for largesse are government funded, with none of the advantages of the Ivy League.
Even more intriguingly, all the recipient colleges are led by presidents who are women. The money started hitting the universities about seven weeks ago and there has been a steady stream of offers since then. The pattern has been for a faceless intermediary - often a bank or financial house - to contact the college administrators, offer the donation on behalf of the nameless client, and then send cheques or money orders for millions of dollars.
The most fortunate individual recipient so far has been Michigan State University, which was given $10m. Ten colleges have each been handed $5m or more, with the stipulation that most of the money should go towards financial grants helping poor students, particularly women and minorities, to reap the benefits of higher education.
At first the gifts were welcomed as one-off windfalls that could not have arrived at a better time amid falling income as a result of the economic downturn. But as the number of cheques mounted, the link between them became impossible to ignore. ...
Welcome to my world: wonderful, fabulous Detroit. Smile as you pass, and don't look anyone creepy in the eye. That's it, you're doin' fine.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
College offers alternative energy education
Tanveer Ali
The Detroit News
DEARBORN -- With the earth facing the threat of climate change and Michigan sorely in need of jobs, the time to remake Michigan into a state that runs on alternative energy is now, presenters said Friday at Henry Ford Community College's Alternative Energy Summit. "Michigan can greatly benefit from policies to improve our energy initiatives and promote alternative energy," said one of the keynote speakers, Monica Patel, a researcher from the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center, to a crowd of more than 500. The speeches kicked off a day of exhibits. A DTE executive talked about the impact alternative energy could have on the state's economy. Ford Motor Company discussed hybrid technology, while General Motors brought cars for ride-alongs. Attendees learned how to implement geothermal energy in their homes....
Well done! Now quit selling student info to credit card companies, you idiots.
College offers alternative energy education
Tanveer Ali
The Detroit News
DEARBORN -- With the earth facing the threat of climate change and Michigan sorely in need of jobs, the time to remake Michigan into a state that runs on alternative energy is now, presenters said Friday at Henry Ford Community College's Alternative Energy Summit. "Michigan can greatly benefit from policies to improve our energy initiatives and promote alternative energy," said one of the keynote speakers, Monica Patel, a researcher from the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center, to a crowd of more than 500. The speeches kicked off a day of exhibits. A DTE executive talked about the impact alternative energy could have on the state's economy. Ford Motor Company discussed hybrid technology, while General Motors brought cars for ride-alongs. Attendees learned how to implement geothermal energy in their homes....
Well done! Now quit selling student info to credit card companies, you idiots.
I'm as surprised as Mark-The-Lark, who sent this.
Amid deficit, Detroit schools to return unspent $16 million
BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER
January 16, 2009
The deficit-ridden Detroit Public Schools failed to spend more than $36 million in federal aid for low-income children last school year and will have to return $16.3 million, according to the Michigan Department of Education.
The unspent funds -- first reported Thursday on freep.com -- are from grants earmarked for programs for children who are failing or at risk of failing. The money could have gone to professional development, increasing parental involvement or paying salaries for teachers, social workers or other staff who work on targeted programs.
While the money went unspent, at least 83 teachers and 32 social workers were laid off this school year. DPS ended the 2007-08 school year with a $139-million deficit and is struggling to pay for basics such as toilet paper and fuel for buses. Gov. Jennifer Granholm is expected to appoint an emergency financial manager soon to take control of the district's $1.1-billion budget.
DPS received $135 million in Title I, Part A grants last school year. Of the $36 million that was not spent, $20 million can be carried over to this school year and the rest will go back to the state, MDE spokesman Martin Ackley said.
Virginia Cantrell, president of the Detroit Federation of Teachers union, called it unacceptable for a troubled district to return needed money.
"I understand you can't use Title I to buy toilet paper, but you can't tell me that those guidelines are so strict that we could not use that money and use it appropriately," she said.
Board member Ida Short, who chairs the committee on academics, said she sent memos to Superintendent Connie Calloway about the Title I. "Dr. Calloway sat on it," Short said.
The board voted last month to fire Calloway, who is on paid leave as she fights to get her job back....
BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER
January 16, 2009
The deficit-ridden Detroit Public Schools failed to spend more than $36 million in federal aid for low-income children last school year and will have to return $16.3 million, according to the Michigan Department of Education.
The unspent funds -- first reported Thursday on freep.com -- are from grants earmarked for programs for children who are failing or at risk of failing. The money could have gone to professional development, increasing parental involvement or paying salaries for teachers, social workers or other staff who work on targeted programs.
While the money went unspent, at least 83 teachers and 32 social workers were laid off this school year. DPS ended the 2007-08 school year with a $139-million deficit and is struggling to pay for basics such as toilet paper and fuel for buses. Gov. Jennifer Granholm is expected to appoint an emergency financial manager soon to take control of the district's $1.1-billion budget.
DPS received $135 million in Title I, Part A grants last school year. Of the $36 million that was not spent, $20 million can be carried over to this school year and the rest will go back to the state, MDE spokesman Martin Ackley said.
Virginia Cantrell, president of the Detroit Federation of Teachers union, called it unacceptable for a troubled district to return needed money.
"I understand you can't use Title I to buy toilet paper, but you can't tell me that those guidelines are so strict that we could not use that money and use it appropriately," she said.
Board member Ida Short, who chairs the committee on academics, said she sent memos to Superintendent Connie Calloway about the Title I. "Dr. Calloway sat on it," Short said.
The board voted last month to fire Calloway, who is on paid leave as she fights to get her job back....
DPS academy issues plea for toilet paper
Letter sent home with students says school can't afford supplies, including trash bags, light bulbs.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Oralandar Brand-Williams, Mark Hicks and Jennifer Mrozowski / The Detroit News
DETROIT -- At least one city school is visibly bearing the scars of the district's financial woes with an appeal for donations of toilet paper and light bulbs.
This week, administrators at the Academy of the Americas sent a letter home with students asking parents and others to donate items "that are of the utmost importance for proper school functioning and most importantly for student health and safety" -- including light bulbs, trash bags, paper towel rolls and toilet paper. Students said the items were expected to be accepted at the front office starting Monday.
The district's "budgetary constraints" meant officials no longer were able to supply the necessities, Principal Naomi Khalil said in the letter to parents. ...
Letter sent home with students says school can't afford supplies, including trash bags, light bulbs.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Oralandar Brand-Williams, Mark Hicks and Jennifer Mrozowski / The Detroit News
DETROIT -- At least one city school is visibly bearing the scars of the district's financial woes with an appeal for donations of toilet paper and light bulbs.
This week, administrators at the Academy of the Americas sent a letter home with students asking parents and others to donate items "that are of the utmost importance for proper school functioning and most importantly for student health and safety" -- including light bulbs, trash bags, paper towel rolls and toilet paper. Students said the items were expected to be accepted at the front office starting Monday.
The district's "budgetary constraints" meant officials no longer were able to supply the necessities, Principal Naomi Khalil said in the letter to parents. ...