MEAP Scores Released, Improvement in Reading Celebrated

MEAP Scores Released, Improvement in Reading Celebrated (Michigan Dept. of Education Press Release, Feb. 28, 2014) Reading test scores for Michigan fourth graders improved for the fourth consecutive year, the Michigan Department of Education reported today. Results from the Fall 2013 Michigan Education Assessment Program (MEAP) are reflective of what children had learned the previous…

Hazel Park Dance Teams Rock Port Huron Competition

Hazel Park Dance Teams Rock Port Huron Competition (Crystal A. Proxmire Feb. 19, 2014) Hazel Park’s dance troupes The Hazelettes, The Parkerettes, and The Vikettes showed off their skills and took home several awards in the Showcase America Unlimited Invitational Competition at Port Huron North High on Feb. 15. Coach Kayla Hendrickson of the Hazelettes…

How Are Michigan Schools Funded… (video)

How Are Michigan Schools Funded: Kevin Deegan-Krause Explains (video) (Crystal A. Proxmire, Feb. 18, 2014) How Michigan schools are funded is a complicated subject, but one that Ferndale School Board Trustee Kevin Deegan-Krause hopes to help the public better understand.  Deegan-Krause, who is also a political science professor at Wayne State University, gave two presentations…

Hazel Park Schools to Expand Great Start Program, Restructure K-5s

Hazel Park Schools to Expand Great Start Program, Restructure K-5s (Crystal A. Proxmire, Feb. 17, 2014) Students at Webster Elementary in Hazel Park will be assigned to other schools in the fall so that the district can expand the Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) which gives four-year-olds a pre-school learning and childcare experience. The decision…

Bridge Magazine Ranks Michigan School Districts

Bridge Magazine Ranks Michigan School Districts (Crystal Proxmire, Feb. 9, 2014) Bridge Magazine looked at public school districts and public charters and compared them based on performance weighted by economics to determine how schools are performing compared to expectations.  The publication used three years’ worth of data and ranked the schools.  A score of 100…

Mode Shift’s Road Map To Understanding SEMCOG

Mode Shift’s Road Map To Understanding SEMCOG (David Sands, Mode Shift, Feb. 2, 2014, orig. wearemodeshift.org/mode-shifts-road-map-understanding-semcog) It was a noteworthy 2013 for the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments. The organization not only helped jumpstart the new Regional Transit Authority, but it’s been busy developing a regional non-motorized transportation plan and conducting an analysis of rapid transit…

Three Ferndale Firemen Jobs Temporarily Safe…

Three Ferndale Firemen Jobs Temporarily Safe as Merger Talks Continue (Crystal A. Proxmire, Jan. 29, 2014) Talks of a fire department merger between Ferndale and Hazel Park have been going on for years, but the hopefulness continues this week as Ferndale City Council voted to delay three firefighter layoffs in anticipation of the merger moving…

Cold Prompts School Closings for Tuesday

Cold Prompts School Closings for Tuesday (C. Proxmire, Jan. 27, 2014) School administrators across SE Michigan have declared Tuesday a “snow day” due to temperatures and wind chills below zero.  Classes and events will be cancelled in many districts, including Berkley, Birmingham,  Clawson, Farmington, Ferndale, Hazel Park, Madison Public Schools, Pontiac, Rochester Schools, Royal Oak,…

Update: Suspect in Ferndale Murder Arraigned

Update: Suspect in Ferndale Murder Arraigned (Crystal A. Proxmire, Jan. 17, 2014) Ferndale Police Lt. William Wilson released the following statement: “On 01/17/14, William Thomas Goad (homeless white male, DOB 01/22/1976) was arraigned and charged with Homicide-Open Murder, Unlawfully Driving Away Motor Vehicle and Larceny In A Building. Judge Charles G. Goedert denied bond. Goad’s…

Ferndale Police Arrest Suspect in Devon Square Murder (video)

Ferndale Police Arrest Suspect in Devon Square Murder (video) (Crystal A. Proxmire, Jan. 15, 2014) When they learned of a body found at Devon Square Apartments around noon on Tuesday, Ferndale Police acted quickly to investigate and capture their suspect in less than a day and a half. The victim’s identity has not yet been…

Nick’s Pizza Opens Ferndale Location

Nick’s Pizza Opens Ferndale Location (Crystal A. Proxmire, Jan. 12, 2014) After over 50 years in Hazel Park, Nick’s Pizza has expanded and opened a Ferndale location at 745 E. 9 Mile.  Now nestled in the same plaza as Apple Fritter, Christine’s Cuisine and the Ferndale Career Center, owners Michael and Karen Lambrecht hope their…