by David Alexander

During her comments, AAPS Superintendent Dr. Jeanice Kerr Swift continually referred to a “downward spiral into mediocrity” caused by reduced money, saying “Shame on our legislators if they don’t figure this out, and shame on us if we don’t help them figure this out.” Quoting an African proverb, she added “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”

On the corner of East Liberty and South Division Streets, a cacophony of horn honking echoed throughout the block just after 5 p.m. last Thursday. However, rush-hour traffic wasn’t the catalyst. Lining the sidewalk near Liberty Plaza Park, roughly a dozen people held homemade signs with slogans such as “Honk if you love teachers.” More people within the park held similar signs during a rally designed to draw attention to funding cuts from Lansing that have been affecting public schools for roughly the past decade.

The rally was held by Michigan Teachers and Allies for Change (M-TAC), a new local group focused on drawing attention and influencing politicians to increase funding to public schools. The group and its supporters claim a causality between Gov. Rick Snyder’s decision to inject less money into the school system since the early 2000s and a dip in performance.
Quinn Strassel, a teacher and M-TAC’s co-founder, said the group’s goal isn’t to point fingers; it wants to emphasize the positive aspects of the public school system. Throughout the rally, the idea of increasing class sizes was a sticking point for many of the speakers, including Strassel. Strassel pointed to the governor’s elimination of the Michigan Business Tax that put money into the public school system.

“I just don’t think that is in line with what most parents want for their kids at a young age,” he said. “It’s about our city deciding what to prioritize, and it seems that education is continually being put on the back burner … it’s not about how much money we are spending; it’s where we are spending it.”

According to National Center for Education Statistics, the average student-to-teacher ratio in the Ann Arbor Public Schools is 17.05.

The rally was the group’s first public event; it featured comments from State Rep. Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor) and Lt. Governor candidate Lisa Brown (D-West Bloomfield) as well as Jeanice Swift, superintendent of Ann Arbor Public Schools, and Linda Carter, Ann Arbor Education Association president.

Although the group claims to be bipartisan, the rally had a heavy Democratic vibe, complete with pro-union and anti-charter school sentiments being expressed by nearly all the speakers. Face painting and ice cream were also available.

Snyder’s $15 billion education budget earlier this year increased funding to disproportionately represented schools such as charters. Strassel and others said charters represent a conflict of interest within the education system.

Irwin said schools also need to look for ways to inspire youth, and he believes groups like M-TAC can offer solutions in that arena. However, he added that education is a tool for social mobility, and the current funding and charter schools impede access for lower class citizens, saying privatizing is a position that is widely reviled in this state.

Those in their teens as well as people well into their retirement turned out to show support.

When he was young, John Haines, 56, of Ann Arbor, changed schools often. Whether it was Ohio, New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts or Indiana, his parents always placed an emphasis on good schools. Although he has no children, that interest in education carried over into his adulthood. He said he would like to see the same quality of education across the state.
“A good education is important for the health of the county,” he said.

A lack of money for public schools leaves local decision makers with little choice, putting them in the position of choosing between unfavorable options, Strassel said. These decisions often leave schools having to cut programs.

Students who spoke about the positive influence these programs have had on them were also among the rally’s speakers.
Sam Kass, an 8th grade student at Tappan Middle School and a member of the Ann Arbor Youth Poetry Team, took the to the lectern. She spoke of the importance of her band instructor, how he has taught her discipline.

“My trumpet makes me feel unstoppable, makes me feel like gold,” she said with the cadence of a poet.

During her comments, Swift continually referred to a “downward spiral into mediocrity” caused by reduced money, saying “Shame on our legislators if they don’t figure this out, and shame on us if we don’t help them figure this out.” Quoting an African proverb, she added “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”

Carter said one of the biggest changes over the years has been a dialing back on support services such as librarians, or what the school system calls media specialists.

That sentiment was echoed by rally goer Anna Rado, 65, of Farmington. Rado has lived and taught in the area for most of her adult life. Now retired, she said the number of support systems has continually dwindled. In particular, not having enough computers for every student can greatly affect students’ performance on standardized tests, which are administered with computers.

“If we want to have students prepared for their future, we need to make sure they have access to technology,” she said.

The rally concluded with Strassel ushering attendees toward a segment of concrete on the lower section of the park. Written in chalk on a blackboard, volunteers had written “Rick Snyder presents the largest classroom in America.” The volunteers stretched a pink ribbon representing the size of the average American classroom. Within moments the upper section of the park was nearly empty as a significant chunk of the estimated 250 attendees cramped into the space between the ribbon.

“Come on, Rick Snyder thinks we can get more people into the a class,” Strassel said.