![[Photo of Michael Van Beek]](/media/images/people/VanBeek150x200.jpg)
Michael Van Beek
Director of Education Policy
Michael Van Beek joined the Mackinac Center in June 2009 as director of education policy. In this position, Van Beek oversees the Center's education research and publications, including Michigan Education Digest and Michigan Education Report.
For four years prior to working at the Center, Van Beek taught political philosophy, government, economics and history at North Hills Classical Academy, a private primary and secondary school in Grand Rapids. He also served one year as a North Hills assistant administrator, assisting with a wide variety of school issues, including budgets, curriculum and teacher-administrator relationships.
Van Beek obtained his Master of Arts in American history in 2005 from Purdue University, where he also held teaching assistantships. He received his Bachelor of Arts in 2003 from Hope College and was twice honored as the top student in the history department. In his senior year, Van Beek was voted captain of the Hope College varsity baseball team, and he was later selected the league's most valuable player by the baseball coaches of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
Van Beek lives in Midland, Mich., with his wife, son and daughter.
By Michael Van Beek
Merit Pay in Mt. Clemens?
A new union contract in Mt. Clemens ties satisfactory teacher evaluations to pay raises. To be sure, this represents a move towards breaking from the assembly line mentality of the single salary schedule in favor of a compensation model based in part on performance. But this is a very small baby step, and it's unlikely to have any impact on raising student achievement. … more
Plagiarism at MSU? You Decide.
Take a look at the MSU study and decide whether this should be considered plagiarism or not. … more
MSU Consolidation Study Seriously Flawed
A new Michigan State University report on school consolidation appears to contain a substantial amount of plagiarized material, as reported by the Mackinac Center on Aug. 18. Diligent reviewers shouldn't stop there, however, because the study's methodology is also deeply flawed. Even if one believes that all districts would save money through consolidation, the conclusion that they could save $612 million is wildly exaggerated. … more
Plagiarism in MSU Study?
A recent study commissioned by Booth Newspapers and conducted by Michigan State University's Education Policy Center concludes that Michigan would save $612 million by consolidating school districts at the county level. While the methodology remains highly suspect, the study suffers from a far greater problem: It appears to contain significant amounts of plagiarized material. … more
'Edujobs' Will Hurt Public Schools
The public school bailout bill, doling out $318 million to Michigan, will ultimately do more harm than good. … more
Mona Shores Teacher Contract Summary
The average teacher salary in the Mona Shore Public Schools was $58,544 in 2009, and employees are not required to contribute anything to health insurance policies that cost the district some $12,800 annually. These are among the highlights in the current collective bargaining agreement negotiated between the district and the local arm of the Michigan Education Association union. … more
"Edujobs" Fact Check, Part II
Michigan's share of the loot from the "edujobs" bill passed by Congress this week will be about $310 million. We're told that this will "save" 4,700 teacher jobs in Michigan. That's highly unlikely, for a couple of reasons. … more
'EduJobs' Fact Check
Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Sen. Debbie Stabenow were quick to praise the new "edujobs" bill passed by Congress as part of a "stimulus II" package. The $310 million is said to "save" 4,700 teacher jobs. That's unlikely. What is likely is that the public school bureaucracy merely gets another shot in the arm. … more
More MEA Obfuscation
The Michigan Education Association continues its perpetual campaign to obfuscate the facts about teacher pay. … more
St. Joseph Teacher Contract Summary
The average teacher salary in the St. Joseph Public Schools was $57,861 in 2009, and employees are not required to contribute anything to health insurance policies that cost the district some $11,400 annually. These are among the highlights in the current collective bargaining agreement negotiated between the district and the local arm of the Michigan Education Association union. … more
Holland Teacher Contract Summary
Most school districts are putting the finishing touches on next year's budget and anxiously awaiting word from Lansing about the exact dollar amount they'll get per pupil. While they're waiting, districts would be wise to give their teachers union contract a close look, since the bulk of school spending is absorbed by these employees. … more
New State Data Show Michigan Public Schools Spent Record Amount Per-Student
Michigan public schools received and spent more money per pupil in 2008-2009 than in any previous year for which figures are available, according to new data from the Michigan Department of Education. … more
Wayne-Westland Teacher Contract Summary
About 75 percent of the Wayne-Westland Community School's $111 million budget goes towards paying employees covered by its current collective bargaining agreement for teachers and a few other employee groups. … more
Ann Arbor Teachers Union Keeps District Out of Balance
The union concedes to help close one-fifth of budget gap, while pay for its members consumes three-quarters of district spending. … more
Districts Save With Health Savings Accounts
More school districts are realizing the savings that can be had from consumer-driven, high-deductible health insurance plans. … more
MEA Rally: Massive Failure or Just Waste of Time and Money?
MEA said they'd bring 10,000 people to Lansing and wound up with only 3,500. … more
Traverse City Teacher Contract Summary
In 2009, the vast majority of teachers in the Traverse City Area Public Schools received a base salary between $45,355 and $67,973, with an average of $56,742. The district also pays $14,631 annually for employee health insurance plans, toward which teachers contribute $87.50 per month, or 7 percent. This contrasts with the statewide average cost (private and public sector) for an employer-provided family plan of $11,300, with employees picking up 22 percent of that amount.
These are among the highlights of the current collective bargaining agreement for teachers and a few other employee groups, obtained from the district by professional negotiators employed by the Michigan Education Association. … more
These are among the highlights of the current collective bargaining agreement for teachers and a few other employee groups, obtained from the district by professional negotiators employed by the Michigan Education Association. … more
The Kalamazoo Promise vs. School Choice
Is "The Kalamazoo Promise" program inherently better than school choice? … more
Another LIFO Victim
LIFO stands for "last in, first out" and describes how nearly all Michigan school districts choose which teachers to lay off when downsizing becomes a necessity. … more
Michigan Department of Education Miscalculates Average Teacher Salary
The Michigan Department of Education improperly calculated the average public school teacher salary in the state for the last six years, reporting figures significantly lower than what is correct. Corrected figures for the past two years were recently released. … more
Paying Teachers Not to Teach
At a recent rally where school employees called for an increase in state taxes, a representative of the Warren Education Association claimed that school revenues were in such disrepair that some students were having to go without desks. A spokesperson from Warren Consolidated schools denied this claim, but even if it were true, a few very minor policy changes well short of tax hikes would be all that is necessary pay for many new desks. … more
Paying Teachers Not to Teach
At a recent rally where school employees called for an increase in state taxes, a representative of the Warren Education Association claimed that school revenues were in such disrepair that some students were having to go without desks. A spokesperson from Warren Consolidated schools denied this claim, but even if it were true, a few very minor policy changes well short of tax hikes would be all that is necessary pay for many new desks. … more
Michigan Department of Education Miscalculates Average Teacher Salary
The Michigan Department of Education improperly calculated the average public school teacher salary in the state for the last six years, reporting figures significantly lower than what is correct. Corrected figures for the past two years were recently released. … more
Port Huron Teacher Contract: Summary and Analysis
In the Port Huron Area School District, about 70 percent of the $106 million operating budget goes towards paying employees covered by current collective bargaining agreements for teachers and a few other employee groups. Yet few people know what is in these or other school labor contracts. … more
