Posts published in “Guest Column”

I became a quadriplegic man 39 years ago. Now I’ve lost my caregivers, had to leave my home and am in life-threatening situations. I am declining and my health is failing without my regular exercise…

As we continue to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan’s non-profit, accredited child welfare agencies are struggling and facing unprecedented challenges to serve children in need and Michigan families. We are severely short-staffed, shouldering the cost…

Recently, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer convened an expert roundtable to focus on the importance of addressing Michigan’s mental health crisis. In advance of the State of the State address, the governor indicated that she would address…

  Each December for 50 years I wrote a check to my alma mater, Wayne State University. I was proud to have earned my medical degree there, one of the few women in the graduating…

We’ve had the pleasure of serving three Michigan governors from both political parties while heading the state’s Department of Community Health. In that role, we dealt with measles, tuberculosis and foodborne illness outbreaks, as well…

The 21st Century path to prosperity — to a broad middle class — is concentrating talent. Not factory jobs. Why? Because today’s mass middle class are professionals and managers who work in offices, schools and…

Last week I taught my preschool students how to make a fort. We pushed the table out so all 18 kids could fit. I turned off the lights, shoved our cubbies against the locked door…

There are many lessons to learn from the recent gun violence that led to the death of four Oxford High School students, not only the physical injury to many others, but the trauma and emotional…

The struggle to find consistent, quality child care has burdened working families since long before COVID-19 became part of our lives. But with staffing shortages and pandemic-related health scares, the problem has intensified, leaving parents…