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The Detroit school district’s board approved a one-year contract with a charter school that operates in the Wayne County Juvenile Detention Facility, as the school’s future remains uncertain.
Board members signed off on the contract last week for Infinity Institute of Learning Strict Discipline Academy after district administrators said the school made enough progress to merit the extension. The one-year contract could also serve as a transition period as Wayne County officials consider other options for educating youth detained in the facility.
Mervat Jaafar, county spokesperson, told Chalkbeat last week the county is preparing to ask for proposals from other contractors and charter schools.
“The purpose is to ensure we secure the highest‑quality educational services for the youth in our care, supported by strong oversight, appropriate interventions, and programming aligned with their individual needs,” said Jaafar.
The charter’s current authorization contract ends June 30.
Infinity Institute of Learning Strict Discipline Academy went through a number of changes last year after the Michigan Department of Education found its management company did not evaluate students for special education services in the time required by the law.
A new management company, Infinite Pathways, overhauled the charter’s staff and brought the charter into compliance with special education requirements, according to the state. Zakia Gibson, CEO of Infinite Pathways, said during the board’s March committee meeting the charter has added transitional services for youth exiting the program.
“I think that we are needed,” she said. “I think that our students and our youth appreciate the services of continuing their education, even under these difficult and trying circumstances.”
The county may seek another one-year renewal with the current management company after this one to “provide the necessary transition period” and ensure there is no lapse in educational services, Jaafar said.
The detention facility has faced scrutiny in recent years for complaints of understaffing and overcrowding. In 2022, youth were left to mostly educate themselves for seven weeks when they were moved to a different facility because the charter was only authorized to operate in Detroit, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Jaafar said the facility has not experienced overcrowding in more than three years.
“The facility has maintained adequate staffing and continues to strengthen staffing levels to support safe operations and high‑quality services,” she added.
Improvements to education in the Wayne County JDF
The charter in the Wayne County JDF, formerly Capstone Charter Academy, was first authorized in 2012, according to DPSCD. It is the only strict discipline academy in Detroit.
Strict discipline academies serve students referred by the court system, have been expelled or suspended from other schools, and those whose special education plans require it. They are intended for students who may otherwise not have an opportunity to be educated.
Michigan law requires that juvenile justice facilities make every effort to ensure the educational needs of the youth in their custody are met. Youth must be provided with appropriate educational services within five days of their arrival.
Schools in the facilities must also comply with special education laws, including providing immediate assessments if a child displays signs of a disability. Students, parents, and public agencies may request initial evaluations, which must be completed within 30 days.
Of the 102 students enrolled in Infinity Institute of Learning Strict Discipline Academy at the start of this school year, 39 had disabilities, state records show. The school serves youth as young as age 10.
The MDE issued a corrective action plan for the charter in February 2025, state documents obtained through public records requests show.
The charter’s students generally have a history of dropping out, previous incarceration, placement in other residential facilities, and short windows of enrollment in other schools, state records show. Students’ typically stay between one and 90 days, according to the state.
A “high percentage” of the students enrolled in the charter were either not evaluated for special education or given an individualized education program, or IEP, in the amount of time the law requires, according to state records. (Records didn’t give the specific percentage.)
The MDE also ordered the charter to train its staff on the revised special education procedures.
Last spring, after the MDE’s initial findings, the charter hired a new superintendent and created several new positions to address gaps in service, according to DPSCD.
A new special education coordinator changed the academic programming, created a new documentation process to ensure students received services, and created a plan to provide outstanding compensatory hours to make up for service and instructional time students did not previously get.
There has been a reduction in the number of compensatory hours owed to students, though there are still more for the charter to make up, DPSCD administrators said.
The charter also improved family engagement and communication, as well as coordination with the JDF, the district said.
The MDE found the charter in compliance in January and closed the corrective action plan.
Felecia Brimmage, superintendent of Infinity Institute, said during the March committee meeting that students are now engaged in their education.
“We are making sure that when youth are coming to us, not in compliance with their IEP, that we are changing that for them,” she said.
Charters are not the only option for educating kids in detention in the state.
For example, the Macomb County Juvenile Justice Center contracts education services with L’Anse Creuse Public Schools, a traditional public school district.
DPSCD’s role with the Wayne County JDF is as an authorizer of the charter that operates within it. Michigan school districts, community colleges, and universities can authorize charters, which means they monitor schools’ compliance with state and federal education laws. They earn up to 3% of the state funding the charters receive.
The Detroit district currently serves as an authorizer for seven charters, including Infinity Institute.
In recent weeks, the DPSCD board began to discuss how it will navigate its relationship with charters. Superintendent Nikolai Vitti has said the standard for authorization is for charters to either meet or exceed the academic achievement of district schools or offer a unique service that DPSCD cannot.
Charter operators, like Infinite Pathways – also known as educational service providers – handle key aspects of daily operations, such as payroll and hiring teachers. In Michigan, most of those companies are for-profit.
Hannah Dellinger covers Detroit schools for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at hdellinger@chalkbeat.org.
Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.