Michigan Opens News Charter Schools For Parents Seeking An Alternative To Public Education
Michigan has opened six new charter schools giving families more alternative education options.
Michigan families have more alternative education options this year. Six new charter schools are opened. These offer individualized lessons, smaller class sizes, and the opportunity for students to find the school that best suits their needs.
In order to better serve communities, Michigan’s new charter schools have opened in Detroit, Ypsilanti, Warren, Livonia, and Muskegon with the hopes to expand to serve students of all K-12 levels. Explore Academy is one of these schools now serving the area. It is an affiliate of multiple college preparatory schools that span across multiple states. The academy’s new principal, Eric Pate, is a Detroit native who taught in the city’s public school system before taking on his role at this new charter school.
His experiences at Detroit Metro displayed just how different education alternatives can be. While Explore Academy is designed to place a maximum of 15 students in each class, he has had to teach class sizes of 40 students or more in his previous position. This lower teacher/student ratio is just one of the benefits of charter schools.
Explore Academy is just starting out, so they are currently serving just 30 middle school students. One of those children is Larry Mccune Jr., a sixth grade student from Redford. When discussing her decision to switch to a charter school, his mother noted that they were seeking “something new.” She wanted more learning options for her son, and that is exactly what Explore Academy is offering.
Because charter schools focus on smaller class sizes they can alter their curriculum lessons to meet students’ needs. Principal Pate expressed his enthusiasm for school choice and being able to provide families with the options they need to better educate their children on an individualized level. He also noted a desire to “change the way education has been done” being that so many students suffer in factorized systems that do not offer educational flexibility.
It’s no secret that trust in the public education system has dropped. A Gallup poll in July displayed that Americans’ trust in public schools has reached the second all-time low. In addition, a RealClear Opinion Research poll revealed in June that school choice is overwhelmingly supported by the general public across political party lines and race. This obvious will of the people is being displayed as charter schools gain more ground and become more widely accepted.
Charter schools have struggled to maintain their community standings as The Biden Administration has worked to restrict these educational alternatives. Despite this, families and community leaders have offered their support for school choice. These options often benefit low-income families and minority students who are stuck in areas with failing public schools. In order to give all students the opportunity to grow into healthy successful adults, many believe that parents should be given the choice of where to educate their children without geographical restraints.
The new Michigan charter schools are welcoming students to new buildings and smaller class sizes. Parents seeking educational alternatives have displayed their support for these new options, while school choice advocates are happy to see communities receiving more educational support. How these new schools affect student success rates are still unknown, but families flocking to these schools are hopeful for the future of these institutions.
