Award winning documentary filmmaker and Dearborn native Tom McPhee will share his latest film, An American Opera, with Dearborn High School students in the school’s auditorium on March 2.

Tom McPhee

McPhee, who grew up on Long Boulevard and attended Dearborn High School (DHS), has won numerous awards for his documentary work.  He also owns two production companies and is executive director of the World Animal Awareness Society.

 His latest work, An American Opera: The Greatest Pet Rescue Ever, tells the story of the vets, owners, officials, and rescuers who worked through the chaos during the days that followed hurricane Katrina to save and reunite thousands of pets with their owners. The work was not easy and there were others who had a different plan to deal with all the abandoned animals.

McPhee will begin his visit at 11:00 a.m. when he sits down for a special discussion with students in the Advanced Video class.  From there, he and the video class will join about 300 other students in the school’s auditorium for a private screening of the film. McPhee will follow up the movie with a question and answer period.

“This is going to be an exciting event that will provide our students with multiple opportunities for learning,” said Sousen Dobbs, a teacher at Dearborn High and event organizer.

Nomination forms for the 2009-10 Alberta Muirhead Teacher of the Year Award, sponsored by Alberta Muirhead and coordinated by the Dearborn Chamber of Commerce, are now available on the district website at www.dearbornschools.org or the Chamber website, www.dearbornchamber.org.

For those of you who may not know Alberta Muirhead, she and her husband John were founders and longtime owners of Muirhead’s, a Dearborn shop that started as a toy store in 1946 and developed into one of the most successful department stores in the Detroit area. In 1983 Mr. Muirhead passed away, and in 1990, after 43 years in the retail business, Muirhead decided to close her store at Michigan and Military and dedicate her energy to a longstanding passion for community involvement and “giving back”.  She later donated her building – that still bears the Muirhead name – to Oakwood.

Forms for the Alberta Muirhead Teacher of the Year Award are also available at all Dearborn Public Schools, and the district Administration Office, 18700 Audette.

Students can nominate new or veteran teachers whom they feel have made outstanding contributions to the teaching profession.

- Preschool through fifth-grade students are asked to describe how their teacher has created a classroom where learning is positive and fun.

- Middle school students (grades 6-8) will need to explain how their teacher connects classroom learning with everyday life.

- Students in high school must describe how their teacher is preparing them to be successful beyond high school.

Adults are allowed to assist in the application process, but nominations must come from students. Applications will be assessed on quality of the nomination, not on the number received. Award judges are members of the Dearborn Chamber Education Committee and are not provided with the teachers’ names. 

Teachers selected to receive the Teacher of Year award are being recognized as positive role models who consistently provide unique, productive, positive classroom experiences.

Teachers selected receive a $1,000 cash prize, a plaque commemorating their achievement, and will be part of a select group of Dearborn teachers who have been recognized by the community for their dedication and passion for teaching.

Completed forms must be turned in to the Chamber Office by March 26, 2010. Please mail both sides of the nomination form to the Dearborn Chamber of Commerce, 22100 Michigan Avenue, Dearborn, MI 48124, or fax to 313-584-9818.

Dearborn Schools Supt. Brian Whiston took to the local papers this weekend, the latest school official submitting a column on the difficult changes the Dearborn School district is facing because of massive cuts in state funding.

Supt. Brian Whiston

His column comes weeks after a “he said, she said” column appeared in the paper from Aimee Blackburn, president of the Dearborn Board of Education and Chris Sipperley, president of the Dearborn Federation of Teachers, Local 681. The column writing has been criticized by some in our city but no one can deny it is an effective way to present the issues facing our district and reach people who may not otherwise attend or watch school board meetings.

Whiston raises some valid points in his column, namely that the school district cannot go back and start over.

“We can’t pretend the $12 million in cuts from Lansing didn’t happen,” Whiston writes in his column that appears in the Sunday issue of the Dearborn Press & Guide. “We are faced with a new beginning that looks different than the beginning we had in September. Our new beginning, although not ideal or the one that we want, can have a successful ending, an ending that is even more meaningful than the one that we planned when the school year started.”

While Whiston spends too much time in his column quoting others to make his points (Woodrow Wilson, Maria Robinson, John Maxwell), he does at least admit the obvious: what lies ahead is going to be extremely difficult for our school district.

“. . . Not only are schools facing the possible loss of a teacher, parapro, or other vital staff member, but they are facing the difficult task of changing the way we meet the educational needs of children or how we deliver instruction. The task ahead will not be easy but it is vitally important to the success of the students in our classrooms. . .”

Indeed. And everyone working in the Dearborn School District will need to come together to successfully navigate the rough waters our schools and students will soon face.

Some Dearborn students returning to classrooms in February for their second semester will find they have new teachers, the result of mid-year layoffs caused by Michigan Gov. Granholm’s decision to slash school funding.

“Just as many of us have had to make adjustments in our own homes as a result of the changing economy, we too are faced with making changes due to less revenue coming from the State,” said Dearborn Public Schools Supt. Brian Whiston

The unprecedented action by the school district – laying teachers off in the middle of the school year – will result in two days off from school for students so remaining teachers can move their belongings to their new teaching locations. This new news comes just days after Dearborn schools announced that as many as 26 staff positions could be saved as a result of the state restoring about $2 million of the $12 million in funding it cut from the district.

Students will be off from school the following days:

Jan. 29, 2010 – No Students, Teacher Duty Day

Feb. 1, 2010 – No Students, Teacher Duty Day

Feb. 2, 2010 - Full Day All Students and Staff

In the coming days, every home in Dearborn will receive a two-page newsletter from the school district explaining these mid-year school changes, how things may look for their students when they return to school in February and answers to many questions about the district’s budget situation.

Supt. Whiston, says every school in the district will experience some changes.

“Unfortunately these reductions could result in some elementary students having a new teacher for the second semester and all grade levels may see a slight increase in class size,” Whiston said. “Principals and district administrators have been working very hard to make as few changes as possible. They’ve focused on protecting class size in grades kindergarten through second and the core subjects (math, English, science) at the middle and high school level.”

While students can also expect to see a decrease in the level of service offered in the Media Centers, Whiston said the centers will remain available for students. Media Centers will be staffed by a Media Specialist only one day a week in larger schools and a half day in smaller elementary schools. Teachers will still be able to bring their students to the Media Center and parents have asked to volunteer in the Media Center to help keep them operating.

“There is no doubt that the district will look different,” Whiston said. “But I’m confident that despite these devastating reductions, our dedicated and highly trained staff will continue to provide each student with effective instruction that ensures academic success.”

Dearborn resident Andrew Angel and his wife, Jean, sent this letter to us, the local papers, the Dearborn Board of Education, the Dearborn Federation of Teachers and the Dearborn Administrators Association.

The letter is timely and well thought out. Mr. Angel asks school leaders to put themselves in the shoes of parents and think what will happen if the board, administration and unions cannot deliver quality education to all children.

“How long do you expect parents to remain in the district if class sizes grow 5% every year? If split grade classrooms are the norm? If our children don’t have school libraries? If we cannot get in touch with administrators because we saved $8,000 on Blackberries? If Halal meals or after school sports are not available? Would you keep your children in the district? Those of us who have the option of moving or paying for private school will be gone in a few years at the most. What will our district look like then? What contract will the unions negotiate with an emergency financial manager?”

Mr. Angel says he and his wife feel that the more people who read it, the more people will think about Dearborn’s school situation and hopefully do something about it.

Mr. Angel earned an undergraduate degree at Michigan State University in public policy and a master’s in business administration. Professionally, he is involved in the logistics side of the corporate world and has held various positions dealing with process improvement, program budgeting and cost reduction.

His letter begins below.

Andrew Angel

Dear Dearborn Educators,

We are proud district parents, and we are writing to ask you to keep four things in mind as you enter the final stages of contract negotiations and the resolution of our current budget crisis:

1) The absolute necessity of structural change for both teachers and administration.

2) Changing the current acrimonious and destructive tone of the budget crisis.

3) Focusing on where the real root cause of our problem lies- Lansing.

4) The critical role the public schools play in keeping our city healthy.

All district employees have had to adjust their expectations downward whether they are Dearborn Federation of Teachers, Association of Dearborn School Administrators, Cabinet or Dearborn School Operating Engineers Association. Most residents of our city and state are adjusting their expectations downward as well.

According to Census data just released, the median adjusted gross income for the state of Michigan fell from $35k in 2000 to $32.6k in 2007. Those numbers are not adjusted for inflation and do not include the effect of rising cost of health care for those that still have it. From what the economic forecasters tell us, we can count on that trend continuing at least another year.

At the same time our district is also facing a change in the students it serves. In 2000, 18.7% of school age children in our district’s boundaries lived under the poverty level. In 2008, a staggering 34.3% now live below that threshold. That means a family of 5 with an annual income of less than $24,800. Please realize that many of those students are children of families who “did everything right,” invested in their education, worked hard, lived below their means, and are now unemployed with few prospects.

The reality of our budget is that Lansing will continue to decide how much money we have available for wages and benefits. You must work together to make significant changes in the promises that we make in the union contracts. Even if all of the unions agreed to a 6.3% wage cut and another step freeze, we will be in the same situation every year if you assume that the district can agree to a salary schedule and then hope to get enough money from the state. Wages and benefit gains must be contractually linked to state appropriations.

Structural change cannot just mean that we ask the teachers to take pay cuts when

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Here is a great new way to support Dearborn businesses.

A new marketing initiative created by a local economics team and students from Dearborn High School could help jump start the Dearborn economy now with the holiday season in full swing.

The new “Shop Dearborn” campaign is the brainchild of Dearborn High School’s Intro to Marketing class. The program is simple: purchase a “Shop Dearborn” card for $25 and then enjoy discounts at more than 200 local participating businesses. Discounts are recurring and the card is active for one year.

The key-chain card, available to both Dearborn residents and non-residents, can be purchased at the school or by clicking HERE.  Participating businesses can also be found at this site. Those businesses who want to participate in this program can do so for free and proceeds will help benefit the Dearborn Education Foundation and ultimately Dearborn Schools.

WDIV Channel 4 did a story after our post here.  The Channel 4 story can be viewed by clicking  Shop Dearborn

Dearborn school officials are asking for input from parents, students, staff and community members to determine whether to change the high school start time from the current 7:20 a.m. to a later time.

We wrote about this very topic back in September. Now a public meeting is being held on Dec. 8 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. to gather additional input to determine whether 7:20 a.m. is too early to begin classes for high school students. We think it is and so have many school districts across the country that now begin classes at least an hour later. The meeting will be held at the Administrative Service Center, 18700 Audette.

Results from an online survey conducted earlier this fall revealed that 60 percent were in favor of some type of change in the school start time. The survey was conducted to determine whether a later high school start time was a topic of interest in the community.

Any change in the start of high school would impact the start of middle and elementary school grades, as well. So it is important for parents with a child in the school system to take part in this discussion.

The Dearborn Parent Teacher Student Association and several other school districts across the state will be marching on Lansing Tuesday to protest Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s decision to cut education funding.

Dearborn school officials are eying massive job cuts as a result of decision by Granholm. For earlier story, click HERE.

Colette Dunsmore, Dearborn PTSA Council President, has been busy notifying parents and media outlets about the march and urging their participation. Ms. Dunsmore said the PTSA wants to fill at least three buses for the trip to Lansing, which is being funded by PTA’s across the district.

Here is what you need to know if you plan on joining the rally, courtesy of Ms. Dunsmore:

DATE:  Tuesday, November 10th

TIME:  Meet at 8am, leave by bus NO LATER THAN 8:15am.

LOCATION:  Ten Eyck Parking Lot (Administrative Services Center)

DETAILS:  We have a permit to be on the steps of the Capitol Building from 10 a.m.-noon. If you want to make signs, please do so! Make sure to include “Dearborn” on the posters plus you may also include “unfair cuts”, “support our children”, etc. You will want to bring a snack with you as we won’t have time to get lunch while we are there. You’ll be able to eat your snack on the way home from Lansing.

RETURN:  Leave Lansing at approx. noon, return to Dearborn around 1:45.

ATTIRE:  Dress warm as we’ll be outside for approximately 2 hours.

QUESTIONS?Feel free to contact Colette Dunsmore at 313-333-0121.

Faced with the task of reducing expenses by $12 million for the 2009/10 school year, Dearborn school officials are considering cutting as many as 250 staff jobs, reducing salaries or a combination of both, according to School Supt. Brian J. Whiston.

The rush by the district to reduce expenses is caused by the most recent cuts from the state at the hands of Gov. Granholm who vetoed money the Dearborn district receives under section 20j of the school aid fund. Section 20j was created in 1999 to ensure equal funding increases to all school districts. The loss of 20j money will cost our school district $5 million. For an earlier story, click HERE.

As of October 26, Dearborn is looking at reducing the district’s expenses by $12 million from the current budget ($655 per student), which is above and beyond the $10.2 million already cut from the 2009/10 budget back in June.

“This loss of funding from the state, made when we are already a quarter way through the fiscal year, has caused an extreme financial crisis in our district,” Whiston said in a letter to the district.

“We must have a balanced budget plan in place by December 1 that addresses these most recent funding reductions from the state. The longer we wait to make cuts, the more cuts we will need to make. For example, cutting a person that cost $50,000 at the beginning of the year will only save $37,500 right now, one quarter of the way into the year. The same can be said when looking at cutting other expenses.”

Whiston and his administrative team are working on a plan that they will present to the school board on Nov. 9.

“This is not an easy task and will most definitely impact all staff members in the district,” Whiston said. “We are reviewing options that would include as many as 250 staff reductions, a reduction in compensation, or a combination of both.”

Whiston said a group of community and staff members were in Lansing this week to talk with state legislators to try and convince them that they need to work to restore school funding. “We will also be reminding lawmakers in Lansing that Dearborn is a donor district and sends $14 million more dollars to the state than the district gets back,” he said.

“There has never been a more pressing time when we need to come together and overcome these financial setbacks,” Whiston said. “Despite the economic challenges faced by schools across the state during the last eight years, Dearborn is still a very attractive district to parents. I feel the reason for this is that we have remained focused on providing a quality education for each child.”

With additional cuts of $5 million in funding for Dearborn Schools, the district is asking all of us to get involved by contacting Gov. Granholm’s office to voice our opinion and ask that all school districts across the state be cut the same per-pupil amount.

As many of us know by now, Gov. Granholm signed the state bill but vetoed the Dearborn School District’s 20J money, created in 1999 to ensure equal funding increases to all school districts. The loss of 20J will cost Dearborn $5 million. The total loss from the state aid cuts for 2009-2010 school year will be $9.5 million, equal to a $527 per student cut which looks like this:

• Foundation allowance per pupil: $3,000,000

• 31a at risk funds: $1,500,000

• 20j funds: $5,000,000

In an open letter to the district, Dearborn Schools Supt. Brian J. Whiston says that with the governor’s veto total cuts for the 2009-10 year will be $20.9 million, $9.5 million of which is attributed to the above state funding loss.

“Please remember, we are already a donor district and send $14M more to the state than the district gets back,” he says in his letter. “We are fortunate that we still are a very attractive district drawing over 400 additional students into our schools this year alone to bring us to 18,444, fourth largest in the State of Michigan. We cannot afford though to take the brunt end of this hit disproportionally more than most all other districts.”

As a bit of background, the district provided this synopsis for why the veto took place: Gov. Granholm has vetoed 20j funding as a strategy to get Senator Mike Bishop to agree to increases of revenue from specific taxes so to be able to fund this year’s state aid package which was most recently passed. Senator Bishop is a supporter of 20j funding, which goes to 43 districts, benefiting approximately 200,000 students.

So we really need to address letters to both Gov. Granholm and Sen. Bishop, urging them to do the right thing for the greater benefit of students and their education in Michigan.

You can call Gov. Granholm at 517-373-3400, fax her at 517-335-6863 and/or write her at:

Governor Jennifer Granholm, P.O. Box 30013, Lansing, MI 48909

You can call Sen. Mike Bishop at 517-373-2417, fax him at 517-373-2694 and/or write him at:

Senator Mike Bishop, P.O. Box 30036, Lansing, MI 48909