"Mike Thomas arrives at Detroit's Chrysler Elementary every weekday at 2 p.m. He helps direct traffic. He tutors. He buys toilet paper."Mike Thomas isn't the principal. He is a Detroit Public Schools parent. And every time he sees a news story about the failures of the district and how lazy parents are, he gets angry.
That's because the stories aren't about him. Complaints about teachers aren't about his wife, Shannon, who continues to work after school until 11 p.m. every night creating exciting lesson plans, grading papers and making sure her students have food and coats.
"The parents at our school -- we work hard," he said. "I know those parents you're talking about, but it's not us."
Ninety-three miles away from that school, state Rep. George Cushingberry, D-Detroit, lauds parents like the Thomases.
But he wants to do something about the other parents, the ones who are too young, or who don't read well enough to help their children. He is sensitive to those for whom poverty has been an obstacle.
But Cushingberry -- and I -- want something done to help teachers whose classrooms are filled with kids whose parents have let them down. Whether they are behaviorally challenged or just woefully, academically
