(The Center Square) – A bill that would strip a requirement that teachers hired after Sept. 1, 2019, in Detroit public schools have raises based on their performance would affect 1% of teachers.
Democratic state Sen. Stephanie Chang introduced Senate Bill 0359. The bill passed the House and Senate this month and will be sent to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for approval.
The Detroit teachers’ union contract states that new teachers get salary increases if their evaluations are either “effective” or “highly effective.” In Michigan, teacher evaluations have four categories: highly effective, effective, minimally effective and ineffective.
The reason the bill wouldn’t have much impact is because, historically, 99% of Detroit’s teachers have been rated in the top two categories.
In 2021-22, 25 of the 3,285 Detroit teachers evaluated were given “minimally effective” or “ineffective” evaluations and would have been denied a salary increase.
In 2020-22, 36 of 3,149 teachers evaluated were given the two lowest evaluations and would have been denied a salary increase.
Detroit’s clumping of 99% of its teachers in the top two evaluations is not an outlier. The vast majority of school districts in Michigan have rated 99% of their teachers as either “highly effective” or “effective.”
Chang wrote in a June 7 Facebook post: “Yesterday, the senate education committee took up my bill that will restore collective bargaining rights regarding compensation for educators in the Detroit Public Schools Community District. In 2016, when DPSCD was created, the GOP legislature limited the ability of new DPSCD teachers and the district to consider longevity and advanced degrees in determining compensation. This makes Detroit the ONLY district in the state with this unfair prohibition. We heard from educators about the work they are doing for our kids in Detroit and how our current law puts them at a disadvantage, sometimes forcing good teachers out to other districts. Passing my bill will help make sure we keep good DPSCD teachers, benefitting our kids!”
Chang didn’t respond to an email seeking comment. Detroit Public Schools Community District stated it couldn’t comment for this story because it was in negotiations with the teachers’ union.
