The City of Detroit has released safety inspection reports from 11 Detroit Public Schools today.
But, this is only the beginning. As inspections are conducted on all of the DPS schools, the City of Detroit will post the results on its website.
The results posted today are for the following schools: A.L. Holmes Elementary-Middle School, Benjamin Carson High School, Blackwell Institute, J.E. Clark Preparatory Academy, Cody schools, Detroit International Academy, Dossin Elementary-Middle School, Greenfield Union Elementary-Middle School, Osborn schools, Ronald Brown Academy, and Spain Elementary-Middle School.
A number of violations are noted in the individual reports from rodent issues to water leaks.
“We are giving school officials a reasonable timeline to correct the deficiencies, and we hope they will,” said Mayor Mike Duggan in a press release. “If they don’t, we are going to take prompt legal action to enforce compliance."
Duggan also states that a shortage of funds is no excuse for building or health code violations.
Detroit Public Schools spokesperson Michelle Zdrodowski released the following statement about the inspection report:
DPS appreciates the city of Detroit for working in partnership with Detroit Public Schools to create a good working and learning environment for the District’s students and staff. Since inspections began, the District has cooperated fully with the City and its inspectors.
The inspection reports have called out a variety of issues and the District is developing plans to address the corrections requested in each school. In a majority of cases, the corrective actions requested are those that can and/or are already being addressed. There are, however, a number of corrections that are more extensive and costly. Life and safety matters are, of course, our priority and we are working to address those issues immediately.
The District will also be taking the inspection reports that it receives from the City and meeting with the State's Department of Licensing and Regulations to develop a broader plan that assures that we are following health and safety guidelines and remediating all issues of concern within our available resources.
DPS will continue to explore all of its budgetary options to ensure that its buildings are safe for its students and their families, staff and the public.
Earlier this month, the Building, Safety, Engineering and Environmental Department started inspecting all of the schools in the district after complaints from school staff, students and parents. The inspection process is expected to be complete in April, according to the City.
If you wish to report a problem at your school, go here.
