Catherine Ferguson Academy status update

Anyone know the current status of the Catherine Ferguson Academy and farm? I remember visiting it years ago when I was working with Detroit Summer. I took DDOT home with several of the girls at different occasions and was inspired by all their goals and dreams.

I heard a rumor it is now a charter and that Paul is no longer running the farm? Some other organization is using the farm instead of the girls. Is this true? Is the same principal still running the school? If Paul and the principal what a horrible loss to a wonderful program.

I was trying to follow the school closure story on DYes while I was in Montreal studying but haven't noticed any updates. Thanks in advance for any info.

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Originally Posted by lukabottle

Anyone know the current status of the Catherine Ferguson Academy and farm? I remember visiting it years ago when I was working with Detroit Summer. I took DDOT home with several of the girls at different occasions and was inspired by all their goals and dreams.

I heard a rumor it is now a charter and that Paul is no longer running the farm? Some other organization is using the farm instead of the girls. Is this true? Is the same principal still running the school? If Paul and the principal what a horrible loss to a wonderful program.

I was trying to follow the school closure story on DYes while I was in Montreal studying but haven't noticed any updates. Thanks in advance for any info.

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From Wikipedia:

School type	Charter operated, public funding
School district	Blanche Kelso Bruce School District [[2011—) Detroit Public Schools [[1986-2011)[1]
Principal	Asenath Andrews[2]
Grades	9-12
Enrollment	Approx. 300 [[2010)[3]
Language	English
Area	Urban

Also.....

Blair Evans, CEO of Evans Solutions, announced that the school's programs would continue unchanged, however, the staff would have to work in a "non-union environment".^[5] Several teachers would not be returning to the school because it would no longer be part of the Detroit Public Schools system.^[1] G. Asenath Andrews, the school's principal since 1986, said new teachers would be hired and that as a result of the school's privatization, the students would have more access to funds and services than before.^[1] The school already has farm animals such as goats, chickens, roosters and seasonally a horse.

Its pretty interesting. Is this the same principal?

status: not like it used to be.

Paul got moved to Osborn, and will be officially retired in June. After the closing last year he had to down size his animals [[they were no longer 'needed') and he did not bail hay last year [[why fill a barn for a charter school?) He just finished cutting this year’s first cutting and plans to tackle a large row crop. Paul truly misses the support that alot of you visitors gave him to fight the system and 'plant' new ways of thinking. He has planted another old school site [[old Ferry) and is developing a new focus to address urban re-development, site pollution, urban farming, bio-mass as ethanol base fuel or wood gasification, incinerator pollution effecting food systems, and teaching.

Yes another org is running the school, info posted above. Interesting connections if you do a little diggin.


Yes, same principal.

PLease keep an eye out for Paul plowing...or bailing the ferry field.

Side note: when we were doing the last cutting a woman came out to the tractor and was yelling at Paul, "...I have seen you steal this hay for 15years and all you do is take it out to the farms for those rich guys horses..." To someone who committed those 15 years to helping the most in need, it was a reminder of the work that still needs to be done AND the difficulty of building something while having to defend it...