Advocacy

Black History Month is coming to a close, but that does not mean we should stop recognizing the contributions that African Americans have made and continue to make in U.S. history. EdTrust-Midwest is grateful for the strong partnership we have built with our Michigan Partnership for Equity and Opportunity (MPEO) coalition, as we continue efforts to identify ways to close gaps in opportunity and achievement that disproportionately impact students who are the most underserved, with a particular focus on Black and Latino/a students and students from low-income backgrounds. Monique Marks, president & CEO at Franklin Wright Settlements and MPEO member, [...]

Annually, Black History Month is observed from Feb. 1 to Mar. 1 as a celebration honoring the contributions that African Americans have made and recognizing their central role in U.S. history. The tradition began in the Jim Crow era and was officially recognized in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial celebrations. In partnership with EdTrust-Midwest, the Michigan Partnership for Equity and Opportunity (MPEO) works to close gaps in opportunity and achievement that disproportionately impact students who are the most underserved, with a particular focus on Black and Latino/a students and students from low-income backgrounds. Deidre Bounds, president at Ignite Social [...]

The Michigan Partnership for Equity and Opportunity – a diverse, bipartisan, statewide coalition of leaders centered on educational equity – today praised Gov. Whitmer’s Growing Michigan Together Council for including several key transformational school funding recommendations in its final report.  “State leaders made a historic commitment in June to Michigan’s students, especially those who are most underserved, when they codified in state law a new Opportunity Index – a mechanism that will drive much greater state investment in students who qualify for at-risk funding based on a school district’s concentration of poverty, regardless of region,” said Alice Thompson, one [...]

From the rural reaches of northern Michigan to the urban centers of our largest cities and the surrounding suburban and exurban communities, every one of Michigan’s 1.4. million public school students deserve the opportunity to flourish in school and life. Yet, that’s tragically not the case, especially for students who are most underserved. The state’s recently released M-STEP results are just one of the many indicators that reinforce why we need to urgently transform our education system. Consider that the percentage of students scoring proficient on key subjects is still below pre-pandemic levels. For example, Michigan scores dropped in 2023 in [...]

Editor's note: Annually, September 15 – October 15 serves as Hispanic Heritage Month, providing a time to pay tribute to the many contributions, cultures and histories of American Latinos who have influenced and enriched our nation. Throughout the month we are spotlighting members from the Michigan Partnership for Equity and Opportunity – a diverse statewide coalition of leaders and organizations ranging from civil rights, business, civic, parent, and other sectors – and the incredible work they do for students and education equity. Originally from San Perlita, Texas, a small border town on the Texas-Mexico border, Jose Luis Orozco, Jr. is a licensed professional counselor who advocates for the Latino [...]

More than 60 education equity advocates – including local elected leaders, state officials, educators, civil rights, civic and business leaders, supporters and partners – joined together recently to celebrate a historic school funding win for Michigan’s students, especially the most underserved.  The event, which took place at Fellowship Chapel in Detroit, was a celebration of a systemic change to invest dramatically more in students from low-income backgrounds – and discuss next steps to create a truly fair school funding system based on what leading states and research say is needed to close opportunity gaps for students with the greatest [...]

Editor's note: Annually, September 15 – October 15 serves as Hispanic Heritage Month, providing a time to pay tribute to the many contributions, cultures and histories of American Latinos who have influenced and enriched our nation. Throughout the month we are spotlighting members from the Michigan Partnership for Equity and Opportunity – a diverse statewide coalition of leaders and organizations ranging from civil rights, business, civic, parent, and other sectors – and the incredible work they do for students and education equity. At the age of nine, Adnoris “Bo” Torres migrated from Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, to Battle Creek, Michigan, with his [...]

The Michigan Partnership for Equity and Opportunity (MPEO) is a diverse statewide coalition focused on advancing opportunity and improving learning outcomes for all of Michigan’s students, particularly those who are the most underserved, including Black, Latino, and Arab-American children, those living in concentrated poverty and rural districts, students with disabilities, and multilingual learners. MPEO envisions that Michigan will be a Top 10 education state in public education, a place where all children achieve at high levels. We must act urgently to transform our education system so that Michigan’s students have the same opportunity for success as students in leading [...]