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Thursday, December 10, 2009

Editorial: These five steps must be taken to address Detroit school crisis | detnews.com | The Detroit News


Editorial: These five steps must be taken to address Detroit school crisis | detnews.com | The Detroit News:

"• Community summit. The schools won't be improved until the entire community embraces the necessity of reform. There's no room here for adversarial relationships. Everyone must awaken to the emergency and work together to solve it.

Detroit should convene a community summit that results in a blue-ribbon committee whose purpose is to build support for the reform efforts of Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb. Appointed by the governor to right the district's finances, Bobb has been operating without the broad backing of parents and city residents. He can't do this alone.

Detroiters must want a quality education for their children badly enough to move beyond any resentment over Bobb being appointed by Lansing and recognize that he is acting solely on behalf of their children. The support committee could take on the job of selling Bobb's plan to the community, as well as help him to navigate through Detroit's uniquely insular political structure."