Public education requires support from all Michiganders to succeed, and it is in the best interest of Michigan to invest in the next generation of talent. During this 2025 Mackinac Policy Conference session, hosted by Detroit Public Schools Community District Foundation, public education leaders from across the state discussed their ideas and actions to move Michigan’s K-12 programming to a top-10 national ranking.
The conversation began on a stark note: Michigan ranks 44th in 4th grade reading and 44th in graduation attainment, and its 800 school districts are all controlled locally.
In response to these stark numbers, Torgow believes that business has an important role in changing Michigan’s education system.
“Business is responsible for driving this. Business needs to be at the table, he said. “We have to be the people to move this.”
Huntington National Bank’s Students Wired for Achievement and Greatness scholarship program (S.W.A.G.), in partnership with the Michigan Chronicle, targets deserving Detroit students who are passionate about leadership and community service. The program even follows them throughout their post-grad careers and provides financial loans to assist with future startups.
Vitti also echoed the importance of partnerships in solving Michigan’s education ranking, sharing the partnership between Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD), Ballmer Group, and United Way to combat Detroit’s poverty challenges, leading to chronic absenteeism. The organizations have developed health hubs to offer free medical services and family resources, like toiletries, immigration services, and electric bill support.
“When they miss 18 or fewer days, they are three to five times more likely to be at grade level on M-STEP and be college ready for the SAT and ACT,” Vitti said.
Lovelady Mitchell noted businesses have been “instrumental” in helping students understand the relevancy of school subject matter in a real-world way.
The panelists emphasized the importance of investing in Michigan’s teachers, the backbone of the state’s education system.
“It’s really sad that in our country today, and around the world, the people that we pay the least are our teachers and police officers. They are guarding our streets and our children,” said Torgow.
Vitti also stressed the importance of educators. “The most important people in our district are our teachers,” said Vitti. He shared just how much DPSCD has committed to investing in its teachers, from increasing pay to developing its own. Next year, starting teachers at DPSCD will make $55,000 a year, compared to the $38,000 they used to earn.
Torgow suggested increasing pay, incentivizing teachers with stock options, and rewarding them when classrooms succeed and hit high benchmarks, just like the benefits high-performing employees in the business world receive.
When asked whether Michigan has a bad education system, Lovelady Mitchell answered yes, noting that some “metrics are outdated.”
Vitti also shared a similar sentiment about Michigan’s education system.
“With every degree of accountability, there needs to be a degree of support. With every degree of support, there needs to be a degree of accountability. We don’t have that balance in Michigan.”
As the conversation closed, the panelists shared a common goal of working together to make Michigan a top-10 state, stressing that education should not be a partisan issue.
“Education can be a bipartisan issue. It actually can be,” said Vitti.
Michigan has work to do to become a top-10 state in K-12 education.
“We will never reach the target if it keeps switching or changing. We will never attract qualified staff if we keep beating them over the head,” concluded Lovelady Mitchell. “We need to honor the folks who enter the field who want to do the heavy lifting.”
This 2025 Mackinac Policy Conference session was hosted by Detroit Public Schools Community District Foundation.
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