Category Archives: Fresh Thoughts

By Todd Schulz Gov. Rick Snyder has made a blunt claim about Michigan’s schools in 2011: Few of their graduates are actually ready for college work. This spring, Snyder said only 16 percent of the state’s 2010 high school graduates were college ready and that 238 schools had zero — 0 — college-ready students based [...]

By Kurt Metzger Editor’s note: The Center continues a series of comments from Kurt Metzger of Data Driven Detroit on what the 2010 census results mean for Michigan today, and tomorrow. Metzger worked for the U.S. Census Bureau for 15 years and has been studying demographic data and issues in Michigan for three decades. The [...]

“If a man empties his purse into his head no one can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest” — Benjamin Franklin, who did a few things in the 18th century. * Kurt Metzger and his team at Data Driven Detroit have been busy indeed with the wealth [...]

The Latin motto on the state of Michigan’s great seal — “Si Quaeris Peninsulam Amoenam, Circumspice”– says it all. Translation: “If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you.“ And it is a great — no, perfect — set-up for all the wonderful “Pure Michigan” TV commercials extolling the beauties of our state. Naturally, it [...]

In anticipation of Gov. Rick Snyder’s special message on health and wellness in September, The Center for Michigan spoke with Dee Edington, one of the nation’s top experts on designing workplace wellness plans. Edington, director of the University of Michigan’s Health Management Research Center, said he has not advised Snyder on how to improve the [...]

Imagine a city somewhere between the size of Lansing (114,000) and Sterling Heights (129,000). Imagine this city is populated only by children. Imagine every single one of these children lacks basic health insurance. That’s the reality in Michigan, says a health expert engaged in a campaign to get tens of thousands of uninsured children signed [...]

“There is much pleasure to be gained from useless knowledge” – British author and mathematician Bertrand Russell. * Muskegon County looks for cuts in spending. “The proposed budget anticipates $42.9 million in revenues for 2012, the lowest in at least six years and $1.3 million less than the current projection for 2011.”: http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2011/08/muskegon_county_proposes_healt.html * In [...]

By Rick Haglund A 15-year-long effort to spur jobs and vitality in some of the state’s most economically depressed areas by turning them into virtual tax-free zones — and thereby forgoing about $1 billion in tax collections — is being curtailed by Gov. Rick Snyder. Citing disappointing results in Renaissance Zones, the Snyder administration is [...]

  By Rick Haglund “Blight” and “Traverse City” aren’t often used in the same sentence. But one large, historically significant property in the picturesque northern Michigan community was so blighted that local officials who wanted to redevelop the site were unable to make much progress — until it was approved as a tax-free Renaissance Zone. [...]