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The Detroit district expects to have around $258.5 million in funding that may be used to fund long-sought school upgrades starting next year.
Bringing libraries back to 89 schools is among the proposals the Detroit Public Schools Community District board is considering. If the board approves the plan in the coming months, the libraries could be partially open by fall 2027, Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said.
During a board study session Wednesday, Vitti proposed spending $8.7 million in one-time funding to establish a library system. The money would cover the cost of up to 4,000 books per school, furniture, displays, initial staffing, and a new cataloging system.
If adopted, the plan would reverse years of school library closures in the district tied to budget restraints and declining enrollment. Teachers in the district say many former library spaces are dormant or have been repurposed, leaving most students unable to access libraries during the school day. Vitti said staffing the libraries for three periods a day would cost about $5 million annually after the initial setup.
LaTrice McClendon, chair of the board, said during the meeting that bringing school libraries back would be a significant step for the district.
“I just want … to point out how historic this moment is,” McClendon said.
The board has not yet voted on the district’s proposals for the one-time funding but is expected to do so at its November or December meeting.
Many parents, educators, and community members have called on the district to restore school libraries as part of its efforts to improve students’ literacy proficiency.
The same call has come from Michigan lawmakers, who have introduced bills to put libraries in nearly every Michigan public school in the state. None have passed.
Michigan was below the national average for public schools with library media centers in the 2020-21 school year, according to the most recently available data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Only 74.6% of Michigan public schools had library media centers, compared with 87.6% nationally.
Though many Detroit district schools have classroom libraries, there were only two certified librarians in the district in 2020. The district also lacks a library cataloging system.
On Wednesday, Vitti said if the board approves the proposal, the long-term plan would be to create a pathway for teachers to become certified school librarians. The certification process could be phased in over time, he added.
“But in the short term, at least all the schools have libraries that are open for certain periods of the day, and not only certain periods of the day, but after school as well,” Vitti said.
In the meantime, Vitti said the district would need to negotiate with the teachers union to potentially allow academic interventionists to run the libraries during part of their workday.
Other proposals include air conditioning, building upgrades
The district’s proposal totaled $251 million and includes a range of building improvements and other projects, many of which have been called for by parents, staff, and community members for years.
The proposed projects include:
- Adding buildingwide air conditioning to 15 schools for $130.1 million. If approved, the only schools without air conditioning would be Northwestern High School, Sampson-Webber Leadership Academy, Osborn High School, and the Essential Skills Transition Program at Legacy. Currently, around 56% of district schools have air conditioning.
- Making accessibility upgrades at 22 schools to comply with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act for $26 million
- Addressing building repairs requested by principals, including damaged gym floors and auditorium upgrades, for $6.3 million
- An emergency expenditure of $1.9 million to repair heating systems at Brenda Scott Academy for Theatre Arts and Nolan Elementary-Middle School
- Updating the district’s warehouse with an inventory system and repairing a freight gate, lighting, and fencing for $572,000
- Building concession stands, restrooms, locker rooms, and storage facilities at Communications and Media Arts High School and Martin Luther King Jr. Senior High School
- Allocating $69.3 million to fill funding gaps for pool and athletic field projects
Where the additional funding would come from
The $258.5 million will become available from several sources, according to district administrators.
Those include:
- A projected unassigned general fund balance of $213.9 million
- Interest earnings totaling $16 million from the district’s capital projects fund and another $10.4 million in leftover contingency funds
- An additional $18.2 million if the board approves eliminating plans to convert a closed school building into an early learning center and renovate Vetal Elementary School
Vitti said Wednesday that the early learning centers are no longer needed because existing district buildings still have available pre-K seats. The original plan was made before Gov. Gretchen Whitmer fully funded pre-K, creating more competition for the district, Vitti added.
The district also no longer recommends renovating Vetal, Vitti said, because the building is in worse condition than officials knew when the facilities plan was adopted and would cost far more to renovate.
Under the proposal, the district would still retain $100 million in rainy day funds, Vitti said.
Hannah Dellinger covers Detroit schools for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at hdellinger@chalkbeat.org.