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Stateside: Measuring a school’s success; Detroit Zoo’s pigeon war hero; disability and employment

soldier holding GI Joe the pigeon
Courtesy of the Michigan History Center
G.I. Joe was a highly decorated war hero who, after WW2, retired to the Detroit Zoo.

 

Today on Stateside, we talk about rethinking how we measure whether a school is succeeding or failing. Plus, a conversation with Michigan Supreme Court Justice Richard Bernstein about how people with disabilities bring unique, important perspectives to the workplace.

Listen to the full show above or find individual segments below.

 

Can tests measure a school’s success? Not on their own, say education experts.

SS_20190612_Matinga_Yun_Failing_Schools.mp3
Stateside’s conversation with Matinga Ragatz and John Yun

  • Benton Harbor school officials are meeting today with Governor Gretchen Whitmer to talk about alternatives to shutting down the city's high school. The district is drowning in debt, and an advisor to Whitmer has called the low test scores there an "academic emergency." Whitmer says closing the high school is the best way to save the district.
  • John Yun, an associate professor in educational administration at Michigan State University, and Stateside education commentator Matinga Ragatz, discuss the state determines which schools are failing, and if there are better ways to judge whether or not schools are successfully educating students. 

 

Seven new governors and premiers will weigh in on the future of the Great Lakes this weekend

 

SS_20190612_Shriberg_GL_Leaders_Conf.mp3
Stateside’s conversation with Mike Shriberg

  • The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence governors and premiers will be hosting their 2019 Leadership Summit this coming weekend in Milwaukee. There, they'll be talking about how the Great Lakes states region deals with environmental threats.
  • Mike Shriberg, executive director of the National Wildlife Federation’s Great Lakes Regional Office, talks about the issues that face the Great Lakes today, as well as where funding and support might come from in the near future.

 

Michigan’s first blind Supreme Court Justice urges business leaders to hire more people with disabilities

 

SS_20190612_Mich_Justice_Bernstein.mp3
Stateside’s conversation with Richard Bernstein

  • People with disabilities can bring an invaluable perspective to the workplace. That's Richard Bernstein's pitch to Michigan employers. As the first blind Michigan Supreme Court Justice, Bernstein is a prime example. He joins Stateside to talk about how his arrival changed the daily functions of the court, and how “different” people can contribute in unique and creative ways to the workplace.
  • Bernstein will be giving a keynote speech Thursday at "Strictly Business," an event to benefit JVS Human Services, a nonprofit that provides assistance, including job placements, for more than 10,000 metro-Detroit residents.

The winged WWII hero who retired to the Detroit Zoo

SS_20190612_MHC_GI_Joe_Pigeon.mp3
Stateside’s conversation with Rachel Clark

  • War heroes come in all shapes and sizes. To commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day, we’re remembering G.I. Joe, a bird known as the most outstanding military pigeon in history. Rachel Clark of the Michigan History Center shares stories about the pigeon’s military career, including the time he flew 20 miles in 20 minutes to save 1,000 British soldiers.

 

Stereotypes common for female veterans, but slow and steady progress continues

 

SS_20190612_Zarb_women_vets.mp3
Stateside’s conversation with Stephanie Zarb

  • Governor Gretchen Whitmer has declared June 12 "Women Veterans Recognition Day." U.S. Air Force veteran Stephanie Zarb joins Stateside to discuss the unique challenges that women veterans face, including not being taken seriously by other veterans. 

 
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Stateside is produced daily by a dedicated group of producers and production assistants. Listen daily, on-air, at 3 and 8 p.m., or subscribe to the daily podcast wherever you like to listen.
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