U-M, MSU thrive while Michigan regional universities scramble for students
by Isabel Lohman, Mike Wilkinson (Bridge Michigan) For Michigan public universities, state demographic trends have been a ticking time bomb: Fewer students are graduating from high school each year, and a smaller percentage of those who do are heading to college. But the pain is not universal. Enrollment at 12 of the state’s 15 public universities […]
What Michigan parents must know about upcoming school standardized tests
By Tracie Mauriello (Bridge Michigan) Monday begins Michigan’s annual six-week testing season that will help determine how successfully public schools have educated children this school year. The results of the various assessments can influence college admissions, teacher evaluations, and whether third-graders are promoted. Here are some answers to questions parents may have about the assessments. […]
One way to address student mental health in Michigan? Bring the clinic to school.
by Koby Levin, Chalkbeat (Bridge Michigan) Many Michigan school administrators say they’ve often served as stand-in public health officials during the pandemic. So it’s no surprise that districts across the state are eager to get some backup from a program that opens clinics in school buildings. School-based health centers make it convenient for students to leave class […]
A northern Michigan restaurant survived the pandemic, but not inflation
By Paula Gardner (Bridge Michigan) The story of Up North Family Cafe may be told in a lot of ways: The entrepreneurial dreams of a Cheboygan family. The creativity of a restaurant thriving during the pandemic. The curves of seasonal spending in Northern Michigan. And it can be told through chicken pot pies. Orders for […]
With Roe in doubt, Gretchen Whitmer moves to protect abortion in Michigan
by Robin Erb and Yue Stella Yu (Bridge Michigan ) Gov. Gretchen Whitmer asked the Michigan Supreme Court Thursday to reaffirm a woman’s right to an abortion under the state constitution — a preemptive move to address the possible downfall of federal abortion protections this year. Since the U.S. Supreme Court issued the landmark Roe v. […]
Michigan is spending big on infrastructure. Its problems are even bigger.
by Jonathan Oosting, Kelly House (Bridge Michigan) LANSING—Michigan officials are celebrating a “historic” deal that will pump nearly $3 billion into aging infrastructure, but advocates say the state should be spending that much — or more — every year to adequately address decades of disinvestment. The one-time funding surge for decades-old water systems, crumbling roads and […]
Mushrooms and other psychedelics gain foothold in Michigan. What to know.
by Zahra Ahmad (Bridge Michigan) Think magic mushrooms are a relic of the counterculture 1960s and 70s? Think again. Hazel Park recently became the third city in Michigan to decriminalize psychedelic plants and psilocybin mushrooms, as advocates collect signatures for a ballot measure that would do the same statewide. Scientists and wellness companies around the […]
Michigan unemployment agency seeks bids to replace troubled computer system
By Paula Gardner (Bridge Michigan) Michigan this month initiated the bidding process to replace its long-troubled computer system in the state’s Unemployment Insurance Agency, planning to spend at least $45 million on a new “customer-centered” approach that should be finalized by fall. The state outlined requirements that it wants to see in the replacement system on […]
New homes demand is high in Michigan. So are builder costs — and prices
by Paula Gardner (Bridge Michigan) Scott Schwanke opened an email on Thursday containing yet another curveball that the state director of M/I Homes will have to field as the company plans to build up to 400 new houses in southeast Michigan this year. He already easily lists how construction financials are changing: Lumber costs hit a record high in 2021, […]
Central Michigan University blames ‘complacency’ for enrollment dive
by Isabel Lohman, Mike Wilkinson (Bridge Michigan) Blaming more than a decade of sagging enrollment on administrative complacency, Central Michigan University is aggressively ratcheting up marketing efforts to woo more students for the fall. In an email to faculty and staff last week that comes after CMU announced plans to temporarily close three dormitories in mid-March, Jennifer […]
