The board made decisions regarding some of the cuts in a closed session that happened in the early part of Monday’s meeting and lasted over one hour.
Read MoreBoard president Burrell noted at Monday’s meeting that the district’s move to proactively ask for an EFM was not just unprecedented, but it might be a bellwether move for the whole state to follow. Coincidental to last week’s request by Muskegon Heights, some members of Michigan’s state legislature might be asking Governor Snyder to change the existing emergency financial manager law to function in a similar way.
Read MoreBoard President Avery Burrell says “we haven’t given up on our district, its not in my DNA” In this radio
Read MoreMultiple board members and Dr. Bryant acknowledged a greater need for the need for the public to stay in the know. Approximately 15 members of the public attended Monday’s special meeting. The board wished for more, both to spread the work and hear suggestions. “We need to educate our public,” said board president Avery Burrel, “And we need to have more forums where our parents come together and let them know what’s going on in our district.”
Read MoreA chain-of-command issue surrounding a fundraiser drew much attention to deeper concerns from the board concerning a lack of transparency: over four days after school districts in Muskegon County took official counts of their students, Muskegon Heights Public Schools has not reported its numbers to the public or, as Board Vice President Ronald Jenkins noted, to the district’s school board.
Read MoreStarting several meetings ago, a push from board vice president Ronald Jenkins to re-evaluate the policy included questions about how uniforms affected enrollment at the district. Board trustee Nate Johnson, the lone dissenting vote on the issue, said the board should not have pushed the issue in the few remaining weeks leading up to the new school year.
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