The Leona Group, a for-profit charter corporation that runs the schools of Highland Park, Michigan, will not offer high school classes next year. It will also end its contract one year early. And enrollment in the schools has dropped by 40% since the for-profit takeover. It is just not that profitable to offer high school.
Leona is closing the only high school in the district, and students were stunned.
Hannah, a rising junior, said the students were shocked and upset. “A lot of us couldn’t believe that they’d close the only high school in Highland Park,” she told the World Socialist Web Site. “We thought they couldn’t do that, because where would we go? But the superintendent called us all down to a meeting in the lunchroom and said she had done everything humanly possible to try to keep the school open.
“It’s really crazy. I am going to miss this school.”
A community meeting has been scheduled for Monday, June 8, for parents and students scrambling to find new schools. They will be assigned to the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) system and reportedly will be offered enrollment at DPS schools, a range of other charter operations, as well as slots in the so-called “failing school district” run by the state’s Education Achievement Authority.
Displaced students, facing the hardship of much longer commutes, will be given bus passes. This hardly compensates for the potentially drastic increase in commute times. For a student to take a bus from the current high school, Highland Park Renaissance, to the closest DPS high school, Pershing, would require three buses. Wait times in the city are beyond onerous in the former “Motor City” where buses can be hours late. A single bus ride could take students to Cass Tech High School; however, that school has a very selective application process.
Hannah said she would be spending her senior year at the Detroit Public Service Academy. DPSA is another Leona Group-run charter school, whose students are called “cadets” and specialize in police, military and emergency responder skills.
“It’s not that I want to do that kind of work,” she explained, “I want to do culinary arts, but they’ll have other subjects too. The DPSA will provide buses right at the CVS to get you to the school. If your parents can’t take you to a further school, you need to do what you have to, to get an education.”
It’s all about the kids. The state of Michigan has washed its hands of responsibility or accountability for public education.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
“Choice!”
It’s odd how the local public option is always taken off the table in these contractual deals between lobbyists and their politicians.
One starts to think they aren’t really “agnostics” after all.
But there’s still choice-y bits of choice!
Surrounding districts and charters descended upon Highland Park students in an effort to market their schools the recently dispossessed.
Everyone was there trying to attract students: charters, the EAA and even some suburban districts!
http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/wayne/2015/06/08/highland-park-high-school-closure/28713865/
Although it doesn’t appear that those descending upon the city to get kids to come to their high schools don’t care if those kids can actually get to those schools. It seems that a big problem for a lot of these kids is transportation.
If ever there was a time for riots.
Dienne: since you commented on a thread on Edushyster today (6-9-15), I am going to cross-reference your comment here with that posting—
Link: https://dianeravitch.net/2015/06/09/for-profit-company-will-not-offer-high-school-in-michigan-takeover-district/
Choice: ain’t it grand? But as Chiara puts it, “choice but no voice.”
😎
“Hannah said she would be spending her senior year at the Detroit Public Service Academy. DPSA is another Leona Group-run charter school, whose students are called “cadets” and specialize in police, military and emergency responder skills.
“It’s not that I want to do that kind of work,” she explained, “I want to do culinary arts, but they’ll have other subjects too. The DPSA will provide buses right at the CVS to get you to the school. If your parents can’t take you to a further school, you need to do what you have to, to get an education.”
Maybe someone in government could do their job and stop allowing this private contractor to make all the decisions for the public.
While I recognize that they have “relinquished” public education to contractors, that leaves the question of what their role is, and why we need them at all.
Well, who needs high school anyway. Right? That’s where it is headed. Drop the democratic responsibility as soon as it becomes outdated, inconvenient, unprofitable or sluggish. Discard it like an old cellphone. Enroll them in “cadet” curriculum as young as possible since we will need plenty of non-thinking recruits for the top-down totalitarianism we are marching toward.
Since the charter schools are propped up by tax dollars it is quite unreasonable for the state to wash its hands of all responsibility for education. whose money do they think they are spending. What happened to the school taxes in Michigan ? Are peoplr still paying them ?
“Since the charter schools are propped up by tax dollars it is quite unreasonable for the state to wash its hands of all responsibility for education. ”
Well, one would think so but apparently not. This way we get to pay two levels of managers- one public, one private.
Looks to me like the private managers are calling all the shots, but that probably happens when one “relinquishes” their job duties.
Chiara: you are on a roll—
You wrote that “we get to pay two levels of managers- one public, one private”—whatever happened to the rheephorm mantra of “charters do more with less”?
I think we have to rewrite that as “charters do more of less” and still get rewarded handsomely, the “less” equaling zero education when it comes to HS.
Do any of the rheephormistas actually have a conscience?
😒
Detroit, city of the future: industry is exported; the jobless can’t afford to move & become squatters in their own town . Schools are closed, street lights removed, water may soon be shut off. Next: refugees?
I just posted about this in the article about Rauner elsewhere on this blog.
In Michigan, Snyder privatized and gave away whole districts to for-profit ed corporations, so they can be in charge of the schools and the money funding them, with everything being outsourced to those for-profit companies.
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/06/08/high-j08.html
In one of those districts, Highland Park, the for-profit ed company in charge, Leona Group, LLC, discovered that running high schools involved higher costs—and lower profits– than running elementary or middle schools.
In response, Leona closed all the high schools, one-by-one, claiming that continuing their operations was “not feasible” financially or profits-wise. When the last public high school recently closed, parents and students were taken aback, not thinking that this was even possible, as the students now had to commute hours on an hours-long, 3-bus route on public transportation to attend the closest school…. either that, or attend a military charter school, with uniforms, extreme discipline, and all the rest that goes with that.
All of this, and what results from it, is what corporate reformers call “school choice” and “the invisible hand of the free market” at work.
“But wait, my ‘choice’ is to have my children attend a tradition public school in my neighborhood, under the oversight of a democratic school board that my fellow citizens and I elect. Can’t I have THAT choice?”
Nope, not going to happen. The “invisible hand of the free market” says otherwise.
When interviewed, those now-outraged parents and students were not even aware that their school district and its schools were run by this for-profit corporation.
Here’s the story:
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/06/08/high-j08.html
The company, Leona Group LLC, and Governor Snyder, in so many words, told the community that, like it or not, we’re doing this. There’s nothing that your or anyone can do to stop us, so just shut the-hell up and accept it.
People need to start ignoring “the charter” (the contract between the state and the school) and instead look at the contract between the charter and the management company.
That’s what governs, and that’s who is running their school.
Just wondering-why are high schools more expensive than elementary and middle schools. I heard it was because of athletics but I’m still confused.
Debra, I think one factor is science labs.
KrazyTA
June 9, 2015 at 11:03 am
Chiara: you are on a roll—
You wrote that “we get to pay two levels of managers- one public, one private”—whatever happened to the rheephorm mantra of “charters do more with less”?
This is a silly distinction they’re making. If the charter school is run by the management company and the management company has absolutely no duty or responsibility to the public outside the terms of the contract the charter school entered into, then they have completely and utterly privatized public schools in every real way that matters to anyone.
Only lawyers care about this distinction, this phony-baloney parsing on “legal entities”. None of that makes a bit of difference to the people who just lost all rights to a public education other than what the terms of the management contract allow. Unless the students skip the (apparently!) useless legislative branch and go right to a court- they could do that, I guess, but even THAT is an indication lawmakers aren’t doing their jobs. It shouldn’t have to go to a court. That’s the last resort. Why did it get that far?
By coincidence, NJ State Supreme Court ruled today on “pension reform” funding agreement. NJ Governor is an attorney & how many attorney/legislators passed plan that “transgresses” state constitution re long-term debt.
The main goal of for profit schools is to be profitable. If they cannot meet their economic quota, they will drop students like a “hot potato.” Students that are rising juniors are in a critical position as it is time for them to apply to colleges. Students do not need the mass disruption and chaos that the for profit market brings them. Strong academics, stability and positive relationships will serve students better throughout their academic careers.
I think it means social promotion resulting from lack of resources. Also, the Common Core obsession with college readiness influences districts to push up their graduation numbers by graduating students who should be in those alternative tracks like vocational, which no longer exists.
If the charter is unwilling to meet its contractual agreement, the ENTIRE contract should be voided. The politicians and bureaucrats who allowed this situation need to be held accountable. That is the real problem with this country – the people DO NOT hold their politicians accountable.
But that isn’t what is happening. “The charter” is meeting its agreement with the state.
The issue here is between the charter and the charter’s management company.
The state ceded too much authority to the charter and then the charter turned around and ceded all operations to the management company.
The public is now twice-removed from any control or input into their schools. The first “relinquishment” was state to charter. The second was charter to management company.
The public needs to see the contracts between the charters and the management company before going along with one of these privatization schemes.
Chiara: world series of the ed debates, tied 3 to 3 in a best-of-7 format, bottom of the ninth, your team has bases loaded and is three runs behind—
And you put it out of the ballpark to win it all.
You have just explained, succinctly and clearly, how the rheephormsters diffuse, deflect and avoid taking responsibility for their actions.
Many thanks.
😎
I just posted about this elswhere on this blog:
In Michigan, Governor Snyder privatized and gave away whole districts to for-profit ed corporations, so they can be in charge of the schools and the money funding them, with everything being outsourced to those for-profit companies.
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/06/08/high-j08.html
In one of those districts, Highland Park, the for-profit ed company in charge, Leona Group, LLC, discovered that running high schools involved higher costs—and lower profits– than running elementary or middle schools.
In response, Leona closed all the high schools, one-by-one, claiming that continuing their operations was “not feasible” financially or profits-wise. When the last public high school recently closed last week, parents and students were taken aback, not thinking that this was even possible, as the students now had to face hours of commuting on a 3-bus route on public transportation to attend the closest school…. either that, or attend a military charter school, with uniforms, extreme discipline, and all the rest that goes with that.
All of this, and what results from it, is what corporate reformers call “school choice” and “the invisible hand of the free market” at work.
“But wait, my ‘choice’ is to have my children attend a tradition public school in my neighborhood, under the oversight of a democratic school board that my fellow citizens and I elect. Can’t I have THAT choice?”
Nope, not going to happen. The “invisible hand of the free market” says otherwise.
When interviewed, those now-outraged parents and students were not even aware that their school district and its schools were run by this for-profit corporation.
Here’s the story:
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/06/08/high-j08.html
The company, Leona Group LLC, and Governor Snyder, in so many words, told the community that, like it or not, we’re doing this. There’s nothing that your or anyone can do to stop us, so just shut up and accept it.
Yet again. Money is more important than people. How very inane. In the dark ages people were mere vassals to the powerful. How close we are to that now. A professor of mine once said that people tried to rebel but that a knight in armor on an armored horse who was trained properly was supreme in a fight. What could peasants really do? With all that is going on now we are in the same predicament. It can only get worse. People cannot believe this. They have not experienced it so cannot grasp the significance of directions in which we are going.
Again, read the June 15 edition of the NATION, and weep.
Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Texas Education.