At Grosse Pointe Memorial Church, Pastor Peter Henry prayed for each member of the city’s board of education by name during a service.
Henry prayed, according to board trustee Christopher Profeta, because the board of education is nearing the end of a months-long discussion about potential district reconfiguration after 15 years of declining enrollment. On June 24, the board of education is expected to vote on whether to move fifth grade students into the middle schools and, if so, which elementary school buildings to close.
Reconfiguration has come with contention and disagreement among community members, resulting in 15 town hall meetings, an effort to recall school trustees, a Facebook campaign and matching billboard advertisement, and the involvement of the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) in the community sandwiched between Detroit and Lake St. Claire.
The reconfiguration option up for vote on June 24 is to close one elementary school in both the “North” and “South” ends of the district (the ends are determined by which schools feed into the North and South high schools) and move fifth graders into middle school buildings.…