The Detroit News: Proposed accreditation changes for Michigan schools could mean trouble for Ypsilanti high schools

By Kyle Feldscher Crime and courts reporter

Posted on Mon, Aug 1, 2011 : 1:44 p.m.

The new school accreditation standards promoted by the Michigan Department of Education could mean trouble for Ypsilanti and Willow Run High Schools, according to a report in The Detroit News.

The News report details how the department and state superintendent Mike Flanagan are looking to revise state accreditation standards to make schools more accountable to parents and students. The changes would make accreditation based on standardized test scores and the schools that scored in the lowest 5 percent of Michigan schools would no longer be accredited.

Both Willow Run and Ypsilanti high schools are listed among the state's 92 Persistently Lowest Achieving Schools, which would put them among the lowest achieving 5 percent of schools in the state. The new accreditation rules would strip schools among the lowest achieving 5 percent of their accredited status. Schools that scored in bottom 20 percent of schools in the state but above 5 percent would be considered "interim accredited," and schools above 20 percent would be considered accredited, according to the report.

The effects of a school having its accredited status taken away could be devastating, according to the report.

The Ypsilanti and Willow Run school boards announced a joint meeting in late August on Friday. The school boards are expected to discuss consolidation opportunities between the two districts.

To read the full report, click here.