Michigan Senate Republicans propose 'MI Brighter Future' to improve K-12 education
LANSING, Mich. — A new plan unveiled by Michigan Senate Republicans aims to raise the bar in education.
Called "MI Brighter Future," the initiative introduced Thursday looks to not only improve childhood learning, but give students and teachers in K-12 schools the support they need, officials said.
"All of our students in Michigan have fallen back half of a year," Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt (R - Porter Township) said. "Our students are lagging behind, even more so before [COVID]. We got to catch them up, we got to provide whatever resources we can."
Recent rankings show the Great Lakes State stands 43rd in the nation for high school graduation rates, and 43rd for fourth-grade reading proficiency.
In addition, only 32% of fourth graders are reportedly proficient at math, and the state's average SAT scores are the lowest since the test was implemented in 2015, officials said.
To help with this, Senate Republican Leaders unveiled the plan that seeks to address teacher evaluations, access to resources, parental discretion, and performance-based bonuses.
"My hope is that there’s a seriousness on education and that the governor and Democrat leadership will come to the table and actually work with us," Nesbitt said. "It means so much to make sure that we are teaching the next generation to succeed and compete in the 21st Century."