Dick Devos Could Still Help Michigan

Republican Dick Devos lost his bid for Governor of the state by a significant margin in the last elections. The billionaire spent millions, much his own money, on his campaign to oust Jennifer Granholm. He ran on a platform that emphasized improving the Michigan economy.

Last month, prior to the elections, I went to Kalamazoo to visit friends. I confess, I don’t get out of Oakland County that often these days, and I was shocked by the lack of “for sale” signs in Kalamazoo. Clearly their economy is not as dependent on the auto industry as ours in Metro Detroit, but there is another factor at play. The Kalamazoo Promise, which provides a free college education at a public Michigan college to graduates of the Kalamazoo Public School system. The program was made possible through an anonymous gift.
The Kalamazoo Promise has caused people to move to Kalamazoo from around the US, not just surrounding local communities. This from NPR:

The Promise is also helping a struggling urban school district that has faced two decades of cuts and declining enrollment. This fall, the district’s classrooms have surged by nearly 1,000 new students, a 10 percent jump.

The burst in enrollment has created more than 30 teaching positions in the school district.

Kalamazoo Promise administrator Robert Jorth says he gets calls daily from families interested in moving into the district. New students have come from 30 states and nearly 65 communities in Michigan, he says.

While local economists say it’s too soon to chart the economic effect of the Promise, there are already positive signs. Local Realtors say home sales are up 6 percent this year and prices are up an average of 7 percent.

I like to imagine what could happen for Metro Detroit if we had the South East Michigan Promise or the Michigan Promise. It would help to stabilize the local economy, and the rest of the state relies on the strength of this region to fund the state budget and public schools.

Why Devos? He’s expressed the commitment to the state. He has a lot of money and he has access to a lot of other people with money. Maybe Roger Penske would join him. Or he could reach across party lines to fellow wealthy West Michigan businessman, Jon Stryker. The situation in Michigan is going to require some serious out of the box thinking. I realize it is more than presumptuous to suggest how other people spend their money. But if Dick Devos, or anyone else for that matter, should take on the challenge, just imagine the legacy they could leave to the state of Michigan.

Update: Just checked technorati, and I am not the first to propose just such an idea. Duh!

[tags]kalamazoo promise, dick devos, jennifer granholm, roger penske, jon stryker, michigan, michigan economy, michigan promise[/tags]

Written by Maureen Francis
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