Detroit Public Schools Community District, Michigan
| Detroit Public Schools Community District |
|---|
 |
| Detroit, Michigan |
| District details |
| Superintendent: Nikolai Vitti |
| # of school board members: 7 |
| Website: Link |
Detroit Public Schools Community District is a school district in Michigan.
On July 1, 2016, Detroit's public school system was split into two entities. Detroit Public Schools, which oversaw city schools, was changed into a revenue-collection entity to pay down the system's debt by 2025. A new district called the Detroit Public Schools Community District was created to oversee schools. Learn more about the reorganization of Detroit's public schools here.
Click on the links below to learn more about the school district's...
- Superintendent
- School board
- Elections
- Budget
- Teacher salaries
- Academic performance
- Students
- Staff
- Schools
- Contact information
Superintendent
 |
This information is updated as we become aware of changes. Please contact us with any updates. |
Nikolai Vitti is the superintendent of the Detroit Public Schools Community District. Vitti was appointed as superintendent on May 23, 2017. Vitti's previous career experience includes working as a superintendent of Duval County Public Schools in Florida, as a chief academic officer of Miami-Dade County Public Schools in Florida, and as a deputy chancellor of the Florida Department of Education.[1]
Past superintendents
- Alycia Meriweather was the interim superintendent of the Detroit Public Schools Community District from 2016 to 2017. Meriweather's previous career experience included working as a teacher and the executive director of the Office of Curriculum in the district.[2][3]
- Karen Ridgeway was the superintendent of the Detroit Public Schools Community District from 2011 to 2015. Ridgeway's previous career experience included working as an educator, administrator, and assistant superintendent.[4][5]
School board
The Detroit Public Schools Community District Board of Education consists of seven members elected to four-year terms. Board members are elected at large.[6]
| Office | Name | Date assumed office |
|---|---|---|
| Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large | Monique Bryant | January 1, 2025 |
| Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large | Sherry Gay-Dagnogo | January 1, 2021 |
| Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large | LaTrice McClendon | January 1, 2023 |
| Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large | Ida Carol Short | January 1, 2025 |
| Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large | Iris Taylor | January 1, 2023 |
| Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large | Corletta Vaughn | 2019 |
| Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large | Vacant |
Detroit Public Schools Board of Education
The Detroit Public Schools Board of Education was composed of 11 members elected to four-year terms. Four board members were elected at large and seven members were elected by district.[7] This board was disbanded on July 1, 2016, with the creation of the Detroit Public Schools Community District. A new seven-member board took office in January 2017 following the November 2016 general election.
Elections
Three seats on the board were up for general election on November 5, 2024.
The November 2016 election was the first election for a seven-member board authorized by a June 2016 state law reorganizing district operations.[8]
No school board elections were held in 2013 due to a legal dispute. State Attorney General Bill Schuette filed a lawsuit in 2012 to remove the seven board members who were elected by geographic electoral districts rather than being elected at large. According to state law, school board members may only be elected by geographic electoral districts instead of at-large as long as district enrollment remains over 100,000 students. Enrollment in the district had not reached 100,000 students since 2008. The school board's attorney, George Washington, denounced the lawsuit as racist and suggested that the state sued in order to allow its emergency manager complete control over Detroit Public Schools.[9][10]
Ballotpedia covered school board elections in 367 school districts in 29 states in 2024. Those school districts had a total student enrollment of 12,203,404 students. Click here to read an analysis of those elections.
Join the conversation about school board politics
Public participation in board meetings
The Detroit Public Schools Community District school board maintains the following policy on public testimony during board meetings:[11]
District map
Budget
The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[12]
| SOURCE | AMOUNT | AMOUNT PER STUDENT | PERCENT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal: | $254,045,000 | $5,234 | 19% |
| Local: | $519,527,000 | $10,704 | 39% |
| State: | $553,704,000 | $11,408 | 42% |
| Total: | $1,327,276,000 | $27,346 |
| TYPE | AMOUNT | AMOUNT PER STUDENT | PERCENT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Expenditures: | $1,078,878,000 | $22,228 | |
| Total Current Expenditures: | $1,056,684,000 | $21,771 | |
| Instructional Expenditures: | $493,058,000 | $10,158 | 46% |
| Student and Staff Support: | $232,753,000 | $4,795 | 22% |
| Administration: | $147,438,000 | $3,037 | 14% |
| Operations, Food Service, Other: | $183,435,000 | $3,779 | 17% |
| Total Capital Outlay: | $13,101,000 | $269 | |
| Construction: | $787,000 | $16 | |
| Total Non El-Sec Education & Other: | $9,093,000 | $187 | |
| Interest on Debt: | $0 | $0 |
Teacher salaries
The following salary information was pulled from the district's teacher salary schedule. A salary schedule is a list of expected compensations based on variables such as position, years employed, and education level. It may not reflect actual teacher salaries in the district.
| Year | Minimum | Maximum |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-2025[13] | $55,000 | $94,000 |
| 2023-2024[14] | $38,500 | $87,000 |
| 2019-2020[15] | $38,500 | $74,000 |
Academic performance
Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements.[16]
The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:
| School year | All (%) | Asian/Pacific Islander (%) | Black (%) | Hispanic (%) | Native American (%) | Two or More Races (%) | White (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-2021 | 10 | 40-44 | 9 | 9 | PS | <50 | 15-19 |
| 2018-2019 | 12 | 32 | 10 | 16 | 21-39 | 15-19 | 17 |
| 2017-2018 | 8 | 18 | 7 | 10 | 20-29 | 6-9 | 11 |
| 2016-2017 | 10 | 36 | 9 | 10 | 20-29 | 6-9 | 13 |
The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:
| School year | All (%) | Asian/Pacific Islander (%) | Black (%) | Hispanic (%) | Native American (%) | Two or More Races (%) | White (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-2021 | 24 | 65-69 | 23 | 21 | PS | <50 | 20-24 |
| 2018-2019 | 18 | 40 | 17 | 22 | 21-39 | 20-24 | 21 |
| 2017-2018 | 13 | 22 | 12 | 16 | 11-19 | 15-19 | 15 |
| 2016-2017 | 18 | 42 | 17 | 18 | 20-29 | 10-14 | 19 |
The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:
| School year | All (%) | Asian/Pacific Islander (%) | Black (%) | Hispanic (%) | Native American (%) | Two or More Races (%) | White (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-2020 | 72 | >=95 | 73 | 67 | PS | PS | 55-59 |
| 2018-2019 | 76 | 90-94 | 76 | 74 | PS | PS | 60-64 |
| 2017-2018 | 77 | >=95 | 78 | 70 | >=50 | PS | 70-79 |
| 2016-2017 | 78 | 85-89 | 78 | 80 | PS | 70-79 |
Students
| Year | Enrollment | Year-to-year change (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 2023-2024 | 48,271 | -0.6 |
| 2022-2023 | 48,548 | 0.0 |
| 2021-2022 | 48,536 | -0.5 |
| 2020-2021 | 48,782 | -3.8 |
| 2019-2020 | 50,644 | 1.4 |
| 2018-2019 | 49,931 | -1.4 |
| 2017-2018 | 50,621 | 10.2 |
| 2016-2017 | 45,455 | 0.0 |
| 2015-2016 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2014-2015 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2013-2014 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2012-2013 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2011-2012 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2010-2011 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2009-2010 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2008-2009 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2007-2008 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2006-2007 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2005-2006 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2004-2005 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2003-2004 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2002-2003 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2001-2002 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 2000-2001 | 0 | 0.0 |
| 1999-2000 | 0 | 0.0 |
| RACE | Detroit Public Schools Community District (%) | Michigan K-12 STUDENTS (%) |
|---|---|---|
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 0.1 | 0.6 |
| Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander | 1.5 | 3.7 |
| Black | 80.8 | 18.2 |
| Hispanic | 14.5 | 9.2 |
| Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Two or More Races | 0.6 | 5.3 |
| White | 2.4 | 63.0 |
Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Staff
As of the 2023-2024 school year, Detroit Public Schools Community District had 2,988.86 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 16.15.
| TYPE | NUMBER OF TEACHERS |
|---|---|
| Prekindergarten: | 156.00 |
| Kindergarten: | 169.85 |
| Elementary: | 1,228.50 |
| Secondary: | 1,071.81 |
| Total: | 2,988.86 |
Detroit Public Schools Community District employed 246.00 district administrators and 213.00 school administrators as of the 2023-2024 school year.
| TYPE | NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS |
|---|---|
| District Administrators: | 246.00 |
| District Administrative Support: | 41.00 |
| School Administrators: | 213.00 |
| School Administrative Support: | 264.03 |
| TYPE | NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF |
|---|---|
| Instructional Aides: | 926.00 |
| Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors: | 90.50 |
| Total Guidance Counselors: | 133.90 |
| Elementary Guidance Counselors: | 71.00 |
| Secondary Guidance Counselors: | 62.30 |
| Librarians/Media Specialists: | 0.00 |
| Library/Media Support: | 1.00 |
| Student Support Services: | 683.00 |
| Other Support Services: | 904.75 |
Schools
Noteworthy events
2009-2017: Emergency managers appointed to oversee school district
From 2009 to 2017, the state of Michigan oversaw the school district through an appointed emergency manager.[17]
On March 2, 2009, Governor Jennifer Granholm (D) appointed Robert Bobb to the position of Detroit Public Schools' emergency manager under Public Act 72 of 1990. He was initially appointed to serve a one-year term in order to address the district's legacy budget deficit, which was projected to reach $305.8 million in June 2009. As the emergency manager, Bobb created an internal audit department, led an enrollment drive, and advocated for a successful $500.5 million bond issue to build and modernize 18 schools in the district.[17] In 2011, the projected deficit was $327 million.[18]
In May 2011, Governor Rick Snyder (R) appointed Roy Roberts to the position of emergency manager after Bobb's contract expired.[19] During his time as the emergency manager, Roberts enforced two consecutive balanced budgets and reduced the size of the legacy deficit from $327 million to $72 million, partially through selling more than $200 million in bonds.[20]
On July 15, 2013, Governor Snyder appointed Jack Martin as emergency manager after Roy Roberts left the position following the expiration of his contract. Prior to serving as emergency manager, Martin spent more than 40 years as a Certified Public Accountant, served as the emergency manager for Highland Park City Schools in 2012, and served as the chief financial officer of the city of Detroit. Roy Roberts expressed support for Martin's appointment. Martin stated that he would pursue a similar deficit-reduction path to the one laid out by Roberts.[21][22]
In November 2013, the Michigan Department of Education removed the federal High Risk status from Detroit Public Schools. According to the school district press release on the matter, "With this action, the district will gain an incremental level of independence in its financial and administrative functions."[23]
In January 2015, Gov. Snyder appointed Darnell Earley as the emergency manager, succeeding Jack Martin.[22] Earley resigned from office in February 2016.[24]
In February 2016, former U.S. bankruptcy judge Steven Rhodes was appointed to the position.[25] Rhodes served until 2017 when the newly elected school board was instated. The board worked with the state-appointed Detroit Financial Review Commission.
2014: Emergency manager removal lawsuit
In September 2014, a majority of the board believed they were authorized to vote out then-emergency manager Jack Martin. According to Public Act 436, a governing body can remove the emergency manager by a two-thirds vote after the manager has served for 18 months. In the resolution passed by the board to remove Martin, the board accused the state of putting the district into a deficit through poor financial decisions and by refusing to let the board take action against those decisions.[26] The board filed a lawsuit asking a judge to allow Martin's immediate removal. Martin's lawyers argued that he not be removed until January 2015, 18 months after his appointment. The school board calculated the 18 months from when PA 436 was passed. The judge granted summary judgment to Martin and dismissed the case. Following the outcome of the lawsuit, the board stated that they would focus on its federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the emergency manager law. Martin left the position in January 2015 and Darnell Earley was appointed as the next emergency manager.[27]
2013: Lawsuit to remove board members dismissed
The Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette filed a lawsuit to remove seven out of the 11 school board members from office, claiming they held office illegally because they were elected while the district did not meet the student enrollment requirements allowing school board elections as outlined by state law. The suit was dismissed in 2013. In a statement, the judge said that the state law did not address what should happen in a district where student enrollment had declined, as it had in Detroit.[28]
2012: District schools removed
In 2012, the state created a reform district. In 2013, enrollment in the Detroit school district fell from approximately 74,000 students in 2011 to 51,979 students. Fifteen district schools and nearly 10,000 students were removed to the state reform district.[29]
2016: Restructuring of Detroit Public Schools
In his January 19, 2016 address, Gov. Rick Snyder (R) sought approval from the Michigan State Legislature for district reforms. Snyder proposed and State Sen. Goeff Hansen (R) sponsored an education bill in late 2015 that would split DPS into two districts.[30]
In response to the proposal, State Rep. Tim Kelly (R) told the Detroit Free Press that the district's debts should be repaid, but no additional funding should go to the district. State Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo (D) expressed concern that the proposal would create an appointed school board for the new district rather than an elected body.[30]
On June 21, 2016, Snyder signed a bill authorizing the division of Detroit Public Schools into two entities effective July 1, 2016. The restructuring plan would maintain Detroit Public Schools as a revenue-collecting entity to pay down the district's debts by 2025. The second district would operate schools using $617 million in state funding. The new school district would be governed by a seven-member board elected in November 2016 with finances reviewed by a state-appointed commission.[30]
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan stated that a mayoral commission, which was removed from the bill by House Republicans, should oversee school finances rather than a state-appointed board.[30] State Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo (D) stated that the bill would not resolve racial disparities in public schools.[31]
2016: Teacher protests and school closures
In January 2016, district school teachers protested class sizes and classroom conditions by calling in sick. On January 20, 88 of the district's 100 schools were closed as a result of the absences. On the same day, the school district sought a restraining order and injunction against the teachers participating in the protests. The district named a group of participating teachers and the Detroit Federation of Teachers (DFT) in the suit, which claimed that 31,000 students (67.4 percent of all students in the district) missed one day of school due to the protests.[32][33]
On January 25, a Detroit judge declined to issue the restraining order, stating there was no indisputable proof that the union or individual teachers were involved with the protests.[34][35]
In August 2016, Judge Cynthia Stephens ruled in favor of teachers Nicole Conaway and Steve Conn, who were sued by the district over their roles in the sick-outs. The district argued that the sick-outs constituted an illegal strike, while Conaway and Conn argued that they were engaging in protected free speech.[36]
Reactions to protests
Mayor Mike Duggan asked teachers to return to work and acknowledged that the protesters were bringing up legitimate issues. Darnell Earley, the emergency manager for the school district at that time, had indicated that the district lacked the funding to make all of the repairs required in order to address teacher concerns.[33]
Prior to the protests, classroom conditions in the school district were the subject of a CBS News report and of reporting from The Washington Post.[37][38]
Contact information
Detroit Public Schools Community District
3011 W. Grand Boulevard
Detroit, MI 48202
Phone: 313-240-4377
About school boards
Education legislation in Michigan
Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.
See also
| Michigan | School Board Elections | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Detroit Public Schools Community District
- Michigan Association of School Boards
- Michigan Department of Education
Footnotes
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools Community District, "About Dr. Vitti," accessed April 6, 2021
- ↑ The Detroit News, "Vitti to take over Detroit schools Tuesday," May 22, 2017
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools, "DPS Transition Manager Judge Steven Rhodes Promotes from Within to Fill Key Transition Team Role; Names Alycia Meriweather Interim Superintendent," March 7, 2016
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools, "Karen P. Ridgeway's Bio," archived October 27, 2011
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "Heads of academics, operations out at DPS," May 27, 2015
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools Community District, "Policy Manual, 0000 Bylaws, TERM," adopted January 9, 2019
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools, "Detroit Board of Education Frequently Asked Questions," archived September 23, 2010
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "July 26 deadline to file to run for Detroit school board," June 30, 2016
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "Judge adjourns lawsuit to dismiss most of Detroit school board," November 14, 2012
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "For now, DPS elected school board stays," November 15, 2012
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools Community District, "0167.3 - PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AT BOARD AND COMMITTEE MEETINGS," accessed January 24, 2024
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools Community District, "Effective 2024-2025 Academic Year," accessed April 23, 2025
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools Community District, "Effective 2023-2024 Academic Year," accessed February 3, 2024
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools Community District, "DETROIT PUBLIC SCHOOLS COMMUNITY DISTRICT," accessed April 7, 2021
- ↑ U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Detroit Public Schools, "Office of the Emergency Manager," archived October 27, 2011
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Detroit Plan Makes Big Charter School Bet," March 14, 2011
- ↑ Crain's Detroit Business, "Former GM exec Roy Roberts to succeed Robert Bobb as Detroit schools' financial manager," May 4, 2011
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools, "Roy Roberts Biography," archived August 23, 2013
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "Gov. Snyder names Jack Martin to replace Roy Roberts as DPS emergency manager," July 15, 2013
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Detroit Public Schools, "Office of the Emergency Manager," archived March 21, 2015
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools, "Michigan Department of Education Removes High Risk Designation from Detroit Schools," November 18, 2013
- ↑ Michigan.org, "Gov. Rick Snyder: Detroit Public Schools Emergency Manager Darnell Earley to leave," February 2, 2016
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "Retired Detroit bankruptcy judge to steer reforms at DPS," February 12, 2016
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "DPS board votes to get rid of emergency manager," September 29, 2014
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "DPS board loses court battle over emergency manager," October 1, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Radio, "Michigan AG loses a bid to remove Detroit school board members," February 7, 2013
- ↑ Detroit Free Press, "Detroit schools' progress cited as emergency manager Roy Roberts announces his exit," May 2, 2013
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 30.3 Detroit Free Press, "Snyder's plan to overhaul DPS could cost $715M," October 19, 2015 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "split" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Michigan Radio, "Officials pledge "seamless" transition to new Detroit school district, but many still nervous," June 23, 2016
- ↑ The Detroit News, "DPS seeks restraining order against teachers," January 20, 2016
- ↑ 33.0 33.1 The Wall Street Journal, "Most Detroit Public Schools Closed as Teacher Protests Ramp Up," January 20, 2016
- ↑ Education Week,' "Detroit Judge Declines to Force Protesting Teachers Back to Classrooms," January 26, 2016
- ↑ Boston Globe, "Judge denies order to stop Detroit teacher ‘sick-outs’," January 25, 2016
- ↑ WOODTV, "Judge rules against Detroit schools in teacher sick-out suit," August 19, 2016
- ↑ CBS News, "Detroit teachers fed up with shoddy school conditions," January 13, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Rats, roaches, mold – poor conditions leads to teacher sickout, closure of most Detroit schools," January 20, 2016
| |||||
