Republican Senator Pushing for Bipartisan DPS Compromise
What will DPS legislation look like?
“It’s going to be a Detroit solution,” says state Sen. Geoff Hansen [R-Hart]. “The Lansing solutions have not been all that successful.”
The Republican sponsor of state Senate bills to save Detroit Public Schools from going broke says he’s fighting to find a bipartisan compromise.
The debate in Lansing over DPS is reaching an apex. The state House recently passed bills that would sanction teachers involved in sick outs, limit union activities, and protect charter schools. That’s in contrast to a bipartisan plan approved by the state Senate that would provide more money for the district and do more to control under-performing schools – including charters.
Detroit Today host Stephen Henderson and Bridge Magazine reporter Chastity Pratt Dawsey speak with state Sen. Geoff Hansen [R-Hart] about the debate surrounding DPS at the state Capitol.
The state’s largest district will run out of money on June 30th. Hansen acknowledged the urgency, “Right now, we have an emergency situation that we have to answer to, to make sure that we can keep stability in the DPS.”
Hansen added that, “I’m a firm believer that we need to get the schools in the hands of Detroit as quickly as we can… It’s going to be a Detroit solution…the Lansing solutions have not been all that successful.”
While Hansen isn’t sure if legislators can come to an agreement in time for the Mackinac Policy Conference at the end of the month, he is still optimistic that this is an “opportunity of a lifetime, right now, to make the difference in the lives of 46,000 kids. We can change the trajectory… It’s almost like pushing the reset button to start over with a fresh clean slate.”
Click on the audio above to hear the entire conversation.
