Public Schools Use Anonymous Tips, Detectives To Eject Children

According to Michigan Capitol Confidential, which researched district practices after a school board member Tweeted to criticize charter schools' diversity, Grosse Pointe’s public schools have some unique ways of preventing nonresident children from continuing to attend schools in town. One assistant school superintendent even went so far visit homes himself:

“In 2012, it was reported that Grosse Pointe paid private investigators $8,000 to see whether students suspected of not residing in the district were enrolled. In 2013, Grosse Pointe Deputy Superintendent Chris Fenton, who earned $155,153 that year, told Bridge Magazine that he sat in his car outside suspected nonresident students’ homes on early mornings to see whether a student comes out of the front door. Fenton told the news site that he even peered through windows and has asked to see children’s bedrooms.

Today, the school district’s website lists data on the number of residences it investigated. Along with that, it lists the number of nonresident students it caught and how many cases involved a tip line it offers residents to report any suspected violations of the residency requirements. “All tips are investigated,” the website assures residents. There have been 104 tips thus far in 2017-18, already exceeding the 2016-17 total of 100.”

Grosse Pointe’s school board consistently votes against participating in school choice, but does allow the children of out-of-district staff members to enroll. This kind of costly enforcement is among measures demanded by district parents in a group called Residents for Residency. According to Bridge Magazine, 8,471 attend Grosse Pointe schools, and the district admits to investigating 100 - 200 children a year, expelling 40-60 school-age children over residency status.

Read full coverage of this story at Michigan Capitol Confidential.

Patch File Photo.