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Friday, March 18, 2011

Detroit Proposes Last-Minute Schools Solution: Charter Conversion | Change.org News #wiunion #miunion #solidarity

Detroit Proposes Last-Minute Schools Solution: Charter Conversion | Change.org News

Detroit Proposes Last-Minute Schools Solution: Charter Conversion

After hearing that class sizes in Detroit Public Schools could be raised to 62 students a class, voices around the nation were outraged.

The next proposal? Close half the city's schools. That didn't get any more support.

Severe budget cuts and mandates from the state meant Robert Bobb, emergency manager of the Detroit Public Schools, has been forced to make some drastic decisions.

But now he's proposing another idea that may mean schools stay open, but many teachers could still lose their jobs - massive charter conversion.

Bobb has proposed converting 40 of the district's schools into charter schools. That's on top of the large number of Detroit kids already in charter schools - the city is the third-highest in the nation, according to the Wall Street