Quote Originally Posted by rustic2 View Post
I don't have a strong opinion on city/mayoral control of DPS. But I'd like its proponents to exlain this to me: How would it help?

That's not a knock on Bing, and I know such arrangements have shown results in other cities and that the current administration and school board are deeply dysfunctional.

But why is mayoral control seen as a magic bullet? The problems at DPS run so deep and have been 40 or more years in the making. They can't be blamed only on the board, the administration and the teachers. Security is poor at best, parents are too apathetic or too busy, the local economy holds out no hope or educational incentives, the financial bad news never never stops and people continue to flee.

How much difference could the mayor really make?
No, mayoral control is not a magic bullet but whenever there is talk of change there is always one common denominator: money

You're right DPS has been falling downward for decades and the blame is on everyone. The board, the parents, the teachers, the students, everyone. One of the reason there is a call for mayoral control is because if Detroit don't make the first move then the next governor will surely do an Engler and the mayor will get control by default. Another reason for control is that Dept of Ed. has turned off the faucet for money coming to Detroit. Something has to change.