Guest Commentary

Parents’ rights groups aiming to stop school discussions on diversity and LGTBQ issues generally lost at the ballot box. But they are not going away, leaving schools and vulnerable students still in great need of public support.

Imposing three-to-five-year funding cycles makes school funding more predictable and enables better district forecasting. Currently, districts rely on the whims of politics one year to the next. It makes it harder for districts to budget, which makes it harder to solve the teacher shortage issue or hire more counselors.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer must lay out a bold vision to protect our waters, clean up toxic groundwater, keep water services from being privatized and put the onus on chemical companies to show they can operate safely.

Michigan State Superintendent Michael Rice has a long list of policy and funding priorities for the Legislature as Democrats take charge in Lansing.

Justice Richard Bernstein’s public attack on a fellow justice for hiring a clerk who once shot at police is a tacit admission that Bernstein doesn’t believe in the very system he is oathbound to defend. More than anyone else, Pete Martel gave me hope that the system was redeemable.

Among the lessons of the pandemic is the need for a fully funded public health infrastructure and workforce that is prepared to respond to new challenges and allowed to make real-time decisions that protect communities.

Because each of the 12 federally recognized tribes in Michigan is a sovereign nation, the tribal health care system faces piecemeal, disconnected and inconsistent data.

Every person has a right to get where they need to go and the right to choose how they get there.

Something similar happened in 1974 in the turbulent time of President Richard Nixon’s resignation. Will Republicans learn from that lesson?

Using money from our current unexpected surplus to fully fund the State Park Endowment Fund, Michigan can take the burden of maintaining and improving our parks off the backs of hardworking Michiganders, now and into the future

Flu shots are down, and that’s a bad sign for holiday gatherings.

In order to make certain there are positive changes in diabetes prevention in the future, a plan for change must be made now.

Campaigns are about vision. This current crop of Republicans lost sight of what brought them to power in the first place: fiscal responsibility; smaller government; and a strong focus on getting things done.

If the state’s judges really want to solve this problem, they could start doing their jobs instead of rubber-stamping every request to tear an impoverished child from her or his family.

We must ask the right questions to those running for offices this November, and those questions start with whether their priorities stand with our students or their own politics.

The time to ensure our elections are safe, secure, and free for everyone, regardless of political party, is now.

If we can help an unemployed veteran find a job or if we can connect a veteran with combat PTSD to mental health resources, we can help them avoid a crisis.

There is no one single magic policy—not school choice, not book bans, and certainly not culture wars—that will improve outcomes for kids.

Anti-abortion advocates have resorted to ridiculous claims to stoke fears about Prop 3, which permits evidence-based restrictions, but also ensures Michiganders can make their own medical decisions.

It has never been more important to elect leaders who center policy squarely on health. To do that, addressing the climate crisis is essential.