Remembering Viola Liuzzo, murdered 58 years ago in the cause of voting rights:  a personal reflection 
Apr10

Remembering Viola Liuzzo, murdered 58 years ago in the cause of voting rights: a personal reflection 

By Harold C. Ford Viola, Viola you laid your young life down, From Selma to heaven, 3 Ks took you out, Colorblind angel battled bigotry, Viola, Viola lives on in history. –“Color Blind Angel,” Robin Rodgers, 2008 [Author’s note: I was moved to write this personal reflection when my son Justin Ford gifted me a book: From Selma to Sorrow, The Life and Death of Viola Liuzzo, by Mary Stanton, University of Georgia Press, 1998....

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Education Beat:   Glimpses of possible paths forward for Flint’s public schools include “6 Month Focus” and images of new high school campus
Mar29

Education Beat: Glimpses of possible paths forward for Flint’s public schools include “6 Month Focus” and images of new high school campus

By Harold C. Ford Amid the din of Flint’s newly-assembled school panel searching for productive equilibrium, two glimpses of possible paths forward have recently emerged: Prior to its March 15 meeting ending in considerable chaos, the Flint Board of Education (FBOE) unanimously adopted a document titled “Superintendents Proposed 6 Month Focus.” The five-page document, amended before its passage, was affirmed by all seven members, a...

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Yard waste collection begins in Flint April 3
Mar27

Yard waste collection begins in Flint April 3

Yard waste collection begins April 3 in Flint Yard waste collection begins Monday, April 3 for Flint residents. Yard waste is picked up weekly on residents’ normal trash collection days through Dec, 1, 2023. A separate truck collects yard waste on the same day as residents’ regularly scheduled trash day. How yard waste should be placed at the curb Compost materials should be placed at the curb at least 10 feet from regular trash no...

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“This budget offers a level of stability” Mayor Neeley – an increase of $13 million from previous year
Mar25

“This budget offers a level of stability” Mayor Neeley – an increase of $13 million from previous year

By Tom Travis Update: This article has been updated on March 27, 2023 to reflect more information from the Mayor and the city’s 2024 budget. Please note that entire city budget is available at the end of the article. And also, here. “This budget offers a level of stability,” Mayor Sheldon Neeley declared in his budget presentation to City Council’s Finance Committee. The 2024 proposed budget of $63 million...

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Education Beat Analysis:  Flint’s public schools tipping into arguable freefall
Mar24

Education Beat Analysis: Flint’s public schools tipping into arguable freefall

By Harold C. Ford As the newly-constituted Flint Board of Education is beginning to look a lot like the old board, with chaos repeatedly breaking out,  a multitude of sobering realities about the school district are undeniable. Arguably, Flint’s public schools are in freefall. Its student population has fallen from around 40,000 a few decades ago to about 3,000 at present. Though economic malaise and population loss explain away most...

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