I,

had planned to join a bicenten-
nial celebration of the Jewish
community in St. Thomas. But
St. Thomas suffered from Mari-
lyn's devastating force and the
Jewish community was not
spared.
The United Hebrew Congre-

gation, a Reform temple, lost its
social hall and 50 percent of the
congregation lost their homes.
The bicentennial has been put
on hold, said a spokesman for
EFEL Consulting in Philadelphia,
a firm handling the publicity for
the celebration.

Forum Addresses
Education Reform

JENNIFER FINER STAFF WRITER

ood or bad, depending on
which side of the aisle one
sits on, Michigan continues
to lead the way in educa-
tion reform.
To shed light on ongoing edu-
cation considerations, the Michi-
gan Region of Women's American
ORT hosted a community forum
Sept. 28 titled "Redefining Michi-
gan Schools: WhatAre Our Choic-
es?"
Participants in the panel dis-
cussion at the Community House
in Birmingham were Marilyn
Lundy, vice president of the State
Board of Education; state Sen.
Gary Peters; Kathleen Straus, a
member of the State Board of Ed-
ucation; and Michael Warren, the
State Board of Education's ad-
ministrative assistant for school-
code reform.
During the two-hour event,
panel members discussed charter
schools, schools of choice and the
mandated core curriculum.
David Gad-Harf, executive di-
rector of the Jewish Community
Council, asked panelists if the
public-school system required a
major overhaul or "if a patch job
would suffice."
"It's not a question of whether
our schools are so wonderful or if
they are broken," said Ms. Lundy,
a Republican from Grosse Pointe.
"We in the majority are simply
asking how can we provide more
choice, freedom and better qual-
ity to our students."
Ms. Lundy said one of the spe-
cific challenges facing the State
Board of Education is finding an
agreeable point between those
who support the current system
and those who see the need for
publicly funded alternatives.
Mr. Gad-Harf asked if it is wise
for Michigan to continue estab-
lishing charter schools at a quick
rate when their effectiveness is
unproven.
Sen. Peters, a Democrat and
first-term state senator, said he
believes charter schools should re-
main an experiment. Ms. Straus,
also a Democrat, agreed. She said
a small number of students are
impacted by charter schools. She
fears they are a way of funneling
public money to private schools.
She spoke of an Armenian

G

charter school in Southfield
which, until recently, used to be
a private school. "That money is
no longer available to Southfield
(public) schools."

"Public education
is the education
of the public."

Michael Warren

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"I've worked for years to de-
segregate and now we're going
in the opposite direction," she
said.
Mr. Warren, a Republican
who ran against Sen. Peters last
year, said charter schools are not
alternatives to public schools. He
said they are public schools
which follow the same state reg-
ulations.
"Public education is the edu-
cation of the public," Mr. War-
ren said. "There are traditional
and nontraditional ways to do it.
If traditional schools aren't do-
ing their job, nontraditional
schools should fill that void."
Added Ms. Lundy, "If charter
schools are not in the best inter-
est of our children, they will die
their own death."
When the discussion turned
to whether Michigan students
should be taught according to a
state-mandated core curriculum,
panelists divided along party
lines.
Ms. Lundy and Mr. Warren
oppose a mandated core cur-
riculum.
They said if it is introduced,
the state will have to devise a
method of policing districts. They
maintain that curriculum should
be decided on the local level.
Sen. Peters likes the idea,
which he said came from parents
and the business community,
which wants to know what skills
a graduate brings to the mar-
ketplace.
The forum was co-sponsored
by Clergy & Citizens United, the
Greater Detroit Chapter of
Hadassah and the National
Council of Jewish Women,
Greater Detroit Section.

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