Featured photo: Marcellus Jackson, a community member who said he spent 35 years with the Flint Board of Education in alternative education, suggested Flint Community Schools implement a program
Written by Tanya Terry
At a recent community forum held at the Flint Community Schools (FCS) administration building, community members were asked to answer seven questions regarding the future of Flint Schools. Among the questions asked were: “How should the district spend its over $99.3 million in COVID 19 relief/ESSER funds to ensure initiatives and interventions address the academic learning loss of scholars?” and “As it pertains to the future of FCS, would you like to the district to invest in building new schools in the community?”
Marcellus Jackson, a community member who said he spent 35 years with the Flint Board of Education in alternative education, suggested FCS implement a program they visited in Detroit called Focus Hope. The program allowed inner city kids to be put in an apprenticeship training program with Chrysler.
“They had a program where kids would finish this training program and at the end of their tenure, they would get a job starting at $60,000,” Jackson said.
Jackson stated Flint never had an inner city training center, though he continued there was Job Corps and Schools of Choice. He suggested utilizing the old Northern building and said people in the community already have the experience to run schools with programs geared around helping students with lower reading levels.
There was a large amount of discussion from community members about renovating Central High School and other existing schools, which many attendees expressed would be worthwhile. Superintendent of FCS Kevelin Jones said many families had previously expressed what they perceived as a need to build new schools. However, he assured the participants at the forum tilted “Future Focused: Renovating, Rebuilding, Re-energizing” the “re” in renovating, rebuilding and re-energizing meant the district would not “start over.”
Dr. Joyce Ellis-McNeal, a Flint Board of Education member and the board secretary, said Central was not one of her biggest concerns right now. She said since most of the students were located on the north side, those kids are a priority of hers now.
“My goal, my passion, is Northwestern,” Ellis-McNeal stated. “I don’t want to see our kids any longer riding two or three buses to get to school to get a breakfast they can’t really eat anyway. That where I am-making a healthy north side, then moving forward.”
Another topic discussed at the forum included the health of and care given to the food the students receive in school.
The next FCS community forum takes place from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, January 6, 2022, at Pierce Elementary School. Forums for the students & staff and forums at community centers & churches are being planned in the future. For details, visit flintparents.org. or flintschools.org, or follow Flint Community Schools on social media.
