Legalease September 2025 | Navigating Parent Opt Outs After Mahmoud v. Taylor
In recent years, parents unhappy with a school’s curricular decisions or policy choices have provided a multitude of “opt outs” on a number of bases. In June, the United States Supreme Court issued its opinion in Mahmoud v. Taylor and acknowledged a limited right to opt out of certain curriculum based on religious objections. In Mahmoud, the school district introduced a variety of LGBTQ+-inclusive storybooks into the elementary school curriculum, which presented topics…
Principal Pulse Check | We asked: What is one strategy you’re using to build positive staff culture as the school year kicks off?
Tomorrow is drive your tractor to school, so we are all wearing flannels and boots! As a Capturing Kids Hearts school, we start each meeting with "Good Things" so that people can share their wins, whether in school, home, family, etc. Builds a great sense of community, and allows us to celebrate each other. Monitoring enforcement of revised electronic device policy. Teachers see it and know we are all in this together.…
It’s Not Too Late to Join the Innovative Leaders Network—Kickoff Happens This Month!
Are you a school leader looking for a fresh, future-ready perspective on teaching and learning? There’s still time to join MASSP’s Innovative Leaders Network (ILN), and we’re kicking things off this month with a dynamic in-person experience in Lansing. ILN Year 1 Launch: In-Person Kickoff Date: September 24, 2025 Location: Lansing (MASSP Office) Time: 9:30 AM – 2:00 PM (includes lunch) Who Should Attend: Principals, assistant principals, teacher leaders, and central office…
Michigan Transitions from ACT WorkKeys to WIN Work Readiness: What School Leaders Need to Know
Beginning in Spring 2026, Michigan schools will no longer administer the ACT WorkKeys as part of the Michigan Merit Exam (MME). Instead, students will take the WIN Work Readiness Assessments, developed by WIN Learning, a national provider of career readiness solutions. This transition marks a significant shift after two decades of ACT WorkKeys, and while many details are still emerging, school leaders can begin preparing now. The Structure of WIN Work Readiness…
MASSP Seeks Next Executive Director
The Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals (MASSP) is searching for its next Executive Director to lead the organization into its next era of impact and innovation. MASSP, a 1,800-member strong nonprofit established in 1911, represents Michigan’s high school, career technical education, and middle-level principals and assistant principals. For more than a century, MASSP has been the premier educational association in the state—advancing school leadership, advocating for system-wide improvements, guiding curriculum, and…
This Week in Politics in 5 Sentences (or Fewer)
The full House this week took up HB 4024 (the “Student Restroom Privacy Act”) which would mandate that schools restrict access to multi-occupancy bathrooms and locker rooms strictly by sex as listed on a student's birth certificates—the bill (which is DOA in the Democratically controlled Senate) sparked fierce debate on the House floor and despite both ideological and practical concerns (e.g. enforcement, conflict with other state and federal laws, liability, etc.) it…
New Assessment Replacing WorkKeys in the Michigan Merit Exam
Beginning in Spring 2026, Michigan schools will be administering a new work skills assessment as part of the Michigan Merit Exam (MME): the WIN Work Readiness Assessment. This assessment was recently selected through the state's competitive bidding process and will replace the ACT WorkKeys. This is the same sort of rebidding process that resulted in Michigan's switch from the ACT to the SAT as our statewide college entrance exam a decade ago.…
Navigating Anxiety in the Classroom
It was Christina’s 11th year teaching. She noticed that, despite being several years out from the pandemic, her students were struggling more with anxiety and emotional challenges compared to the beginning of her career. So, when the opportunity came to use TRAILS, a nonprofit that equips school staff with training and resources to provide evidence-based and culturally responsible mental health programming to their students, she took it. “We do have one student…
Leadership in Motion | Early Wins, Lasting Momentum: Shifting from Hustle to Leverage for a Strong, Sustainable Start to the Year
Opening Reflection August is already in the rearview mirror. The welcome-back breakfasts are finished, the to-do lists checked off, the PD slides clicked through. What remains now is something more enduring. The first-week buzz is settling (or already has), and the rhythm of the real work is taking hold. By now, you’ve answered a thousand questions, reset expectations, and reminded yourself once again that you can’t do it all. But here’s the…
Student Voice in Action | Start Early, Listen Often
Culture. The word we all throw around but rarely pin down. Everyone’s favorite catch-all, because it can mean everything … and sometimes nothing. We know it drives learning, behavior and the overall feel of a building. But it doesn’t come from motivational posters or quick-fix initiatives – it starts with the students who walk your halls every day. Instructional leadership is about more than data and curriculum; it’s about shaping an environment…