Sometimes we do request a determination of the application of PA 436. Can an Emergency
Manager intimidate a Witness to an official legal proceeding or intimidate them to avoid
legal process altogether? Can an Emergency Manager in the official capacity to act for and
instead of an elected board, limit their free speech, or their right to file a claim with your
agency? Can the Emergency Manager, acting for the Governor, nullify a Title VI complaint
to your agency about suspected criminal activity without a second thought and warn them
not to spend time on such an action ever again?
The greater portion of this complaint is about specific actions of the Governor and his authorities, which we
believe are an egregious, discriminatory, detrimental, and harmful application of his authority. We believe
these actions have been unsafe, unwarranted, negligent, unethical, immoral, inhumane and unnecessary.
Together these actions have damaged the educational opportunities for children, put our children in harm’s
way, further destroyed neighborhoods, encouraged vandalism and other negative outcomes for the
outrageous and astronomical profit of a chosen few. We believe our children are less prepared for college
than they were before State Management began.
The result of the totality of the Governor’s Snyder’s actions described herein is that there are now and have
been two separate and unequal school systems in Michigan. Both systems receive Federal funds. One
system is primarily used by Caucasian students. In this system, authority over schools, BOTH public and
charter, BOTH high performing and low performing resides with the State School Superintendent and State
Board of Education as well as locally elected boards. Locally elected boards are provided with necessary
resources to perform the functions of the position they were elected to. This system allows competitive
bidding which helps ensure trust. Elected boards suffer no retaliation for meeting or requesting help from
Federal resources to investigate possible criminal, retaliatory, unethical actions which have an adverse
impact on a vulnerable minority population.
The other system is primarily used by Black and Latino students. In this system, authority over schools both
public and charter, both high performing and low performing, resides or is under threat to reside with the
Governor, in a special department, which is not the State Board of Education, and his appointed
administrators known as Emergency Managers which supersede locally elected boards. There is little
competitive bidding. For instance, teachers who had a choice of health insurance programs now have one
health insurance program, and the Emergency Manager who made the decision, sits, with his wife, on the
Board of the program! Conflict of interest? Yes. When unhappy teachers leave the district this harms the
students and the tax payers too. When teachers cannot report that the IEP’s of special needs children are not
being followed, then that hurts everyone.
When it is well reported, rumored, whispered, openly discussed, and put in writing that one will be
retaliated against for advocating for their children, it creates a hostile environment.
Unlike other American citizens, the locally elected board in Detroit has been told they are not free to speak
about or meet about any topic of their choosing, without possible discipline. The locally elected Board in
Detroit is not provided with necessary resources to perform the duties expected by voters to research issues
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