Detroit Charter Leader Chanavia Patterson Knew Her School Had Improved When She Was Ready to Enroll Her Own Kids

Chanavia Patterson always knew she would become a teacher, but she didn’t know she would become an outstanding mentor, coach and principal. In 2013, she…

If You Want to Keep Kids in Your School, Parents Need to Buy What You’re Selling

No matter the school, the goal is to ensure students know and feel that they are welcomed, valued and that the staff appreciates students attending…

If You’re Not Going to Teach Our Kids to Read, Then We’re Taking Your Ass to Court

Outrage: Kids Can’t Read, America It took the kid about 5 minutes to read one sentence. He struggled to pronounce the easiest words. I was…

I’ve Done More to Help Students and Parents Than I Ever Did During My 15 Years in the Classroom

The day that I ended my career as a teacher, I woke up as a parent. I had taught for 15 years and I’d reached…

As a First-Generation College Student I Need a Lot More Than Financial Aid

I was reared and schooled in Detroit, where poverty and oppression eloquently danced while violence and crime serenaded the communities. The crime and oppression in…

VIDEO: This Detroit Teacher Uses Hip-Hop Literacy to Engage His Students and the Community

I began teaching at 22. Back in my hometown of Detroit and fresh out of college, I thought I had all the answers.…

New ‘Wash and Learn’ Program Offers Free Books For Kids at the Laundromat

Educators are slowly realizing that teaching during traditional hours simply isn’t enough. It’s why this organization wants to change how and where we’re educating. A…

The Only Thing I Want to See Melting This Summer Is My Ice Cream Cone, Not My Kid’s Brain

Yeah I know, the last thing most of us parents want to do during summer is think about school. We just want to enjoy time…

Here’s Some Suggested Reading for Our Trash-Talking Secretary of Education

You hear a lot these days—especially in the Trump era—about how broken, antiquated and just generally messed up public education is in our country. Just…

Power, Policy and Prayer: My Eye-Opening Phone Call With Betsy DeVos

A few weeks ago I wrote a blog expressing my exasperation with my children’s public school education and my attraction to school vouchers. To my…