George James

Standardized Tests Still a Possibility for Public School Students

Michigan schools are off the hook when it comes to federal requirements for school accountability, but they are still in limbo when it comes to actually administering standardized “high stakes testing”.

The United States Department of Education waived the federal requirements for school accountability for the 2020-21 school year. The reason for the waiver is the disruption to instruction caused by the pandemic.

Michigan can now use testing to measure long-term goals instead of yearly benchmarks. The state is also required to identify schools for targeted support and improvement based on the 2020-21 data.

Districts are further encouraged to reduce the impact of “high stakes testing” by not holding poor scores against students and teachers when figuring grades, being held back a grade, teacher evaluations, and local school ratings.

Casandra Ulbrich, a Blue Water area native and President of the Michigan State Board of Education reacted to the announcement saying, “The waiver removes the federal ‘high stakes’ from the summative test, but still does not address whether schools will be required to administer the tests this year.”

Ulbrich said that the state is still awaiting a decision from the USDOE on the test waiver.  

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Earth Fair Presents 30 Day Challenge

The Blue Water Area usually looks forward to the annual Earth Fair held at Goodells County Park, but due to COVID, it is taking a second year off. In place of the large in-person gathering, families can take conservation action into their own hands with the “30 for 30 Earth Fair Challenge” event. 

Organizer Sarah Davidson-Nelson said, “One of the Earth Fair committee’s purposes is to inspire the community to become better environmental stewards. The 30 for 30 Earth Fair Challenge event is virtual, but it will offer local community members a way to become better environmental stewards in a safe and yet still engaging and interactive manner.”

Participants can check the Earth Fair Facebook page for a new activity each day or check the website for the full list of activities.

Participants can then upload a picture and be entered to win a $50 Visa Gift Card. There is a new chance to win with every challenge.

Everyone who submits a challenge picture will get an Earth Fair Vendor Coupon book good for deals on vendors’ websites.

Examples of challenges include a competitive scavenger hunt at Goodells Park, a trash-free picnic, and exploring a beach, park or trail.

www.facebook.com/EarthDayFair

www.earthdayfair.com/

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

TCF Closer to Merge Into Huntington

Regional banking is changing once again with the merger of two banks with presence in the Blue Water Area. The merger of Huntington Bank and TCF Bank is one step closer to completion after each company’s shareholders approved the merger of TCF into Huntington last week.

Chemical bank merged into TCF just two years ago. Before that, Talmer bank merged with Chemical in 2016.

TCF Bank is a Detroit-based financial holding company with $48 billion in assets and 470 branches. Huntington, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, has $123 billion in assets and 839 branches.

Branch closures are expected, particularly those that are within stores like Meijer, along with layoffs. Huntington Bank will have their commercial banking headquarters in a new building in downtown Detroit.

Stock holders are the big winners in the merger. Stephen D. Steinour, Huntington’s chairman, president, and CEO said he is “very pleased Huntington shareholders support this partnership, as it provides a compelling opportunity to accelerate shareholder value creation, while enabling us to help more people and businesses throughout our local communities.”

The merger is expected to be finalized later this year.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Rebuilding Michigan Dashboard Shows Road Construction Progress

The Michigan Department of Transportation has launched a new online dashboard to track road projects and keep the public informed of the Rebuilding Michigan program, which finances new projects and frees up funding to expand projects and reduce construction time.

MDOT Director Paul C. Ajegba said that the program allows MDOT to “completely rebuild some important freeways that we otherwise could only afford to resurface.” He said the bond funding allows MDOT to accelerate the rebuilding of many other non-freeway projects.

Ajegba said, “In keeping with the governor’s objectives, this dashboard gives people a clear view of the program’s impact across the state in an open and transparent fashion.” 

The Rebuilding Michigan Program aims to rebuild state highways and bridges that are critical to the economy and are used the most. The project is funded by a $3.5 billion bond sale. Longer road life and improved infrastructure are expected from the accelerated projects.

The online dashboard explains the Five-Year Plan and features an interactive map that shows the location, scope, and progress for each project along with a statewide tally of the impact on jobs supported by the plan. 

A link to the dashboard:

Michigan.gov/RebuildingMichigan 

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

MI Symptoms Tracker Logs 3 Million Entries, Provides County-level Data

Over 3 million entries have been logged into the MI Symptoms COVID-19 symptom screening tool. The tool is mainly used by employees to maintain compliance with workplace screening rules.

The mobile and desktop app was created by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and the University of Michigan. It is updated as needed to reflect the changing state and CDC guidance. The app is getting around 20,000 entries per day.

Dr. Joneigh Khaldun of MDHHS said, “While vaccination efforts are ongoing, it is important that people get tested if they have been exposed or have symptoms, and to continue to wear masks, socially distance and wash hands frequently.”

Screening is still required by MISOHA. Employers use the app to keep local health departments updated about workplace outbreaks.

Sarah Lyon-Callo, MDHHS state epidemiologist remarked, “Instead of a local health department having to wait for lab tests to come back, the department will have an indication if there is a group of individuals working in a place where symptoms have been reported.”

The MI Symptoms tracker has a map that shows users what symptoms have been tracked in their community.

https://misymptomapp.state.mi.us/

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland