Where Michigan governor candidates stand on schools, literacy

• Michigan’s next governor will inherit an education system in which students are struggling compared to peers in other states
• How will they fix it? Bridge has the answers from the four remaining candidates, who’ve weighed in on a variety of education issues
• Readers say K-12 school struggles are one of the most pressing issues this election year, according to Bridge Listens survey

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LANSING — From dismal literacy and college readiness rates to a teacher shortage, Michigan’s four gubernatorial candidates say they have what it takes to turn around the state’s problems with education. 

With two Democrats and two Republicans remaining in the Aug. 4 primary, Bridge is revisiting an issue – K-12 education – readers identified as one of their top issues in Bridge Listens, our effort to identify Michigan’s top issues.

Bridge asked each candidate the same six questions, pushing for them to explain how they’d try to implement their proposals.

Click here to read full, unedited responses by the candidates and their campaigns. Or read on to find summaries of their responses.

Childhood literacy

The question: Michigan ranked 44th in fourth-grade reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. What does Michigan need to do to improve? Are there current policies you would keep, change or eliminate?

All candidates acknowledged Michigan is falling behind in childhood literacy and said more needs to be done, though Benson and James proposed hiring more literacy coaches or tutors to work with struggling students. 

The Republicans James and Johnson said the state should focus on teaching phonics, with James saying he would “pursue legislative action” requiring proven K-3 phonics instruction. 

Johnson said it would be “difficult to impose one rigid policy that works everywhere, from rural communities to large urban systems. The state should focus on results, not micromanagement.”

A 2024 law will require districts to ensure teachers have been trained in the science of reading by the 2027-28 school year. 

The Democrat Benson pointed to the need for “professional support for our educators” that had worked in other states, including Mississippi and Maryland. She also specifically mentioned one option: LETRS, a literacy and writing training program for early childhood and elementary educators. 

A law signed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer this month requires elementary school teachers to take literacy training by the 2031-2032 school year.

Swanson suggested working with local school districts to expand early childhood education opportunities like preschool and Young 5s. He also stressed the need to focus on “essential elementary standards so more time is dedicated to building strong foundations in reading, writing, math, and social‑emotional development.”

Choice and charters

The question: Michigan offers public school choice and charter schools, which are publicly funded. Would you push to change anything about the system, including signing up Michigan for the national tax credit scholarship program?

Republican candidates have a refrain: Parents know what’s best for their children and should choose the type of schooling their child receives and where taxpayer funding goes to support it. 

Democratic candidates, in contrast, want to support public schools before privately-run alternatives.

A new “Education Freedom Tax Credit” from President Donald Trump allows those in participating states to be refunded up to $1,700 in donations to scholarship-granting nonprofits that help to pay for private school tuition or students’ educational expenses. Public school advocates have criticized the policy as a “school voucher scheme.” 

As of June, 27 states have opted into the program so far according to the Internal Revenue Service. Michigan has not.

James said he supports the tax credit program and would opt Michigan into the program “on Day 1 as governor.”

“Competition and choice make every school better,” he said. 

Johnson has not indicated where he stands on the national tax credit scholarship program. 

He said the state’s charter system “is best when it encourages flexibility, real parental choice and a diversity of educational approaches” and said he supports “maintaining strong charter and school choice options while ensuring parents have clear information about school performance.”

For the Democrats, Benson suggested charter schools should be held to the same standards as public schools. Both she and Swanson, who count public school teachers unions among their supporters, promised that no resources would be diverted away from public districts if elected.

“What Michigan does not need is policies that further drain resources from the neighborhood public schools where the vast majority of our children learn,” Benson said. “Michigan’s charter schools can and should be part of a thriving educational landscape — but that means holding them to the same rigorous standards we expect of all public schools.”

College readiness

The question: Statewide, only about 27% of high schoolers are college-ready, as determined by student performance on the SAT. How would your administration ensure students are college and career ready when they graduate Michigan high schools?

Michigan’s gubernatorial candidates all say the state should do more to expand opportunities after high school beyond college, particularly in the skilled trades.

Benson, a Democrat, wants to tie high school graduation to a “globally-competitive college and career education standard,” which should include skills from “academics and career preparation to digital literacy and financial health.”

Military service and expanded opportunities for formerly incarcerated Michiganders reentering society should be expanded, said fellow Democrat Swanson. He said career exploration opportunities in middle and high schools should also be expanded so students have a better sense of the futures available to them.

On the Republican side, Johnson argued the state’s goal “should not be forcing every student into college” but instead strengthening schools’ CTE offerings and standards in areas like math, reading “and critical thinking so students graduate with real options.”

James said he wants to align the state’s K-12 curriculum with community colleges and workforce training programs to meet real employer demand with “proven models like co-op and mentorship programs.”

In a later-released education plan, James promised that “every student not headed to college or military service will graduate with a trade certification, professional license, or career-ready portfolio.”

It wasn’t immediately clear what a “career-ready portfolio” would include.

Staffing challenges

The question: The teacher shortage remains a challenge in schools, even as the state has worked to lower the cost of getting a teaching credential. What would you do to ensure Michigan’s schools have the staff they need?

To boost the number of Michigan teachers, candidates coalesced around two main concepts: making it easier to become a teacher and boosting pay or other benefits for those who enter the profession. 

Benson, a Democrat, said she would raise teacher starting salaries to a floor of $60,000 and “meaningfully increase compensation for experienced teachers and school support staff,” but it appears this would require legislative action to accomplish.

Swanson made a similar proposal — though didn’t name a salary amount — arguing teacher salaries and benefits “must be competitive enough to attract and retain talented people who have options in other fields.”

For the Republicans, James said his administration would reduce “overly restrictive licensing barriers blocking talented professionals, engineers, tradespeople and experienced retirees” from teaching. He also called for implementing a proposal to boost teacher pay through merit-based raises, funded by cutting “dollars currently consumed by administrative overhead.”

Johnson called for policies to “make teaching more rewarding day-to-day” – which he said involved “restoring strong classroom discipline, reducing unnecessary bureaucracy, and making sure teachers are supported in doing their job” – without going into detail as to how. 

Changing school metrics

The question: Michigan has repeatedly changed how it measures school performance over the past decade. Is Michigan’s approach to school accountability effective? Would you propose a different method?

Michigan has gone from top-to-bottom school grading, to an A-through-F grading system under Republicans and now a “school index system” to measure school performance, as approved by a Democratic trifecta in 2023.

Some proposed creating new systems. 

Among Democrats, Swanson said he would appoint a bipartisan task force to create another grading system. 

James said he wants “a system built on transparency, consistency and continuous improvement so parents always know exactly where their child’s school stands,” promising more details at a later date. 

The same “globally-competitive” college and career readiness standard Benson has proposed establishing should be schools’ “north star,” the Democrat told Bridge, adding that she thinks there should be “meaningful intervention and support when schools struggle to meet those goals.”

Benson’s later-released education plan also argued that the state should have a strategic education plan that includes “tracking and engaging every single one of our 800 school districts with a clear timeline for implementation and responsibility.” 

It also calls for establishing a “statewide absenteeism strategy along with local implementation plans” to address Michigan’s issues with chronic absenteeism. 

James has also proposed allowing parents to closely scrutinize classrooms by requiring all schools to post their curricula online. James would open up teachers’ instruction materials to Freedom of Information Act requests and require parents to opt their kids into learning on unspecified “controversial subjects.”

Earlier this year, he also proposed a “parental bill of rights” which would include calls to ban transgender girls from girls’ locker rooms, bathrooms and sports teams. That proposal is also part of James’ education plan. 

School funding and equity

The question: Michigan has increased per-pupil funding in recent years but some districts are unable to pass bonds or sinking funds to pay for school infrastructure. Are Michigan schools adequately funded, and would you like to change how Michigan doles out money? If so, please describe how. Additionally, would you seek to alter funding for free pre-K and school meals?

Michigan’s schools are funded by the state on a per-pupil basis, with every school receiving the same “foundation grant” for each student, then additional funding for students who need extra support, like special education.

Benson, a Democrat, was the lone candidate who said she’d like to overhaul that system. She called the current funding approach “antiquated” and it should be replaced with a “transparent equitable funding model that meets the unique needs of every school and every student.”

Since the initial interview, Benson has released an education plan which pushes for Michigan to provide more funding for special education services based on a recent report from the Autism Alliance of Michigan and Clinton County Regional Educational Service Agency. 

She also calls for dedicating the School Aid Fund for only preK-12 purposes, with a separate, dedicated funding system for “higher-education programs.”  Swanson made a similar vow to stop annual budget diversions from Michigan’s School Aid Fund when asked in March.

Michigan’s new budget will divert about $2 billion from the School Aid Fund when the 2027 fiscal year begins in October.

Republican candidates, in contrast, noted Michigan has some of the highest per-pupil funding amounts in the country, and argued more money wouldn’t solve Michigan’s education problems. 

Johnson said his administration would review “how education dollars are being spent” in order to confirm they are “actually reaching students, teachers, classrooms” and improving outcomes. James said he would use “executive action” to audit school meal spending and  “find efficiencies” in Michigan school districts.

As part of his education plan, James also called for giving the governor the power to directly appoint the state superintendent, saying the current state of Michigan’s education test scores was a “moral failure” that needed addressing.

The Michigan Constitution tasks the State Board of Education with choosing a superintendent to lead the Michigan Department of Education. Amending the constitution would require voter approval of either a statewide ballot initiative or changes proposed at a constitutional convention.

It’s not clear what role the State Board of Education would play under James’ education proposal, a spokesperson telling Bridge that while the board would still exist, “it won’t operate in its current form.”

“At the end of the day, the governor will be responsible and accountable for education,” James spokesperson Hannah Osantowske told Bridge.

No candidate said they would seek to roll back access to free pre-kindergarten that expanded significantly during Whitmer’s tenure.

Bridge Michigan Capitol reporter Simon Schuster contributed to this report.

This article first appeared on Bridge Michigan and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.