Duggan Calling For New Accountability Program For School District Improvement

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 05/28/2025) Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who is running for governor as an independent, proposed a plan Wednesday to hold school districts accountable, which involves a five-year period for improvement that a district superintendent would have if they’re deemed failing before they’re replaced. 

Duggan’s keynote address at the Mackinac Policy Conference outlined a “true accountability system” with consequences for failed school leadership that would see a rating for the school district in year one and if they’re failing, they have a year to implement a credible improvement plan. 

In year two, if they’ve failed to improve, the state would offer support to help implement the improvement plan. 

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, an independent candidate for Michigan governor

If they’re still failing in year three, the school’s principal is removed and a new leadership team is put in place. The new team would have year four to make improvements. 

If there is still no improvement in year five, then the superintendent would be removed. Duggan said this system would be overseen by an “educator-led group” that would rate and evaluate the schools to decide if they’re failing or meeting the expectations of their improvement plan, Duggan said. 

“I don’t think it’s unreasonable for the taxpayers of this state to say there’s going to be accountability for the extra money we put in,” Duggan said.  

Duggan is referring to $4.5 billion, which he says would be necessary to turn Michigan’s education system around. To get that money, Duggan said legislators could cut two percent from the budget and revenue growth should produce about $600 million per year. 

The plan is Duggan's proposed fix to what he said is a broken system in which both parties vie for a trifecta that allows them to implement or repeal education policies they want or don’t want, which creates a back and forth nightmare for educators and students. 

“And when they get the trifecta, it all falls apart. They can’t pass anything anyway, because they’re so evenly divided and (they) fight with each other,” Duggan said.  

He added the current system either dictates that a majority must be won or a majority must be built across party lines based on policy. 

Rather than thinking about what can be done if one party controls both chambers of the Legislature and the governor’s office, Duggan is pushing legislators and the next governor to consider what would genuinely benefit Michiganders and students so that consistency can be implemented and results can be delivered.