DECISION 2008: Endorsements
Our picks for university, state education boards
The Detroit News
Never before in Michigan has the quality of our schools and universities mattered so much to our state's survival. As our manufacturing job base shrinks and the global knowledge economy takes hold, Michigan's young people need excellent academic training to prepare them for job and college opportunities. More than ever, we need smart leaders to guide our educational institutions.
The Nov. 4 election provides an opportunity to put such people into office. These are our endorsements for the State Board of Education and the boards of the Big Three public universities.
State Board of Education
Republicans Scott Jenkins and Richard Zeile are challenging Democratic incumbents Kathleen Straus, the board's president, and John Austin, its vice president, for two eight-year terms on the board, which is designed to provide leadership and policy direction for the state's schools. Board members select the state superintendent and usually make decisions on educational standards.
Voters should support Scott Jenkins, an experienced reformer who understands the connection between school performance and reviving our economy. Once a national model for excellence, Michigan's K-12 schools have fallen to average quality by multiple measures.
"It's going to take long, consistent pressure over the next 10 years to turn around our educational reputation," says Jenkins, 42, who served as education policy coordinator for former Gov. John Engler. "Businesses used to move here just for the educational system. They don't do that anymore."
As vice president of the educational policy firm Red Cedar Solutions Group, Jenkins helps urban districts find savings and implement strategies to close their student achievement gap with suburban schools. He also has good ideas on how state and local leaders should use existing funds to make sure all schools are effectively implementing the state's new high school curriculum.
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