detroit

During the city of Detroit’s bankruptcy, the state-appointed administrator sought to cut pension payments for thousands of retired city workers in violation of Michigan’s state constitution. 

DPS has operated its school system using a top-down, bureaucrat-run model for decades. Under this structure, teachers are protected with outdated tenure rules and rewarded for the amount of time they work in the system, rather than for performance. Innovation is scarce, and administrators, who often enjoy exorbitant salaries, are not encouraged to make the sort of radical changes that are needed to turn the city’s schools around.