Gov. Rick Snyder has signed a controversial executive order transferring the state school reform office from the Michigan education department to a state office that is directly under his control.
The move affects 138 schools whose academic performance has them ranked in the bottom 5 percent of all schools statewide. State law requires them to develop improvement plans, and the state reform office monitors those plans and holds the schools accountable. The executive order is particularly targeted at 54 schools that have operated under an improvement plan for more than three years.
Gov. Snyder has no direct control over the education department, which is run by the schools superintendent, who is hired by an elected school board. That board has a strong Democratic majority, unlike the GOP-controlled legislature and governor’s office.
