Obscure Law Fuels Lawsuit Fire
According to the Detroit News, the ACLU has filed a class-action lawsuit in Wayne County Circuit Court. The lawsuit alleges that the school district and the state have failed to do their job in ensuring students within the Highland Park School District can read at grade level. The lawsuit further asserts that although students are supposed to be provided with “special assistance” if they don’t make grade-level proficiency in grades four and seven, these students were not given any additional help to bring their reading skills up to par.
Michelle Johnson also has a daughter who attends Highland Park schools. Johnson told the Huffington Post that while her daughter is entering her junior year of high school, she is reading anywhere from five to seven grades below where she should be.
“My daughter is ashamed of where she is,” Johnson said. “She wouldn’t speak out until the other day to tell that she couldn’t do the work or read and write.”