Flint High Schools Struggle on the Gridiron

Last August I lamented the decline of Flint's public high school football programs — see the stats below — and things actually seem to be getting worse. As the 2010 season wraps up, Flint schools were a combined 5-22, with the Northern Vikings accounting for all the wins:

Northwestern 0-9
Southwestern 0-9
Northern 5-4

Even Powers Catholic, which has a .677 winning percentage dating back to 1970, only managed to eke out a single win against Northwestern.

I've said this before, but it would be nice if Flint consolidated into a single public high school. The demographics will force it to happen sooner or later. (Flint is expected to have fewer than 2,500 high school students by 2013.) It would be cheaper and provide a better education to Flint high school students. And it would probably produce a competitive football team as an added bonus.

Here's the post from August 2009:

With the start of the high school football season yesterday, it's hard not to notice that one of the casualties of Flint's shrinking population and economic malaise has been the success of the city's public school teams.

Flint Northwestern: By going 5-4 last year, the Wildcats posted their first winning season since 1984. During that run, the team had five 0-9 seasons. Northwestern beat Southwestern in this year's season opener, 32-6.

Flint Southwestern: In the last twenty years, the Colts haven't had a single winning season and have a combined 39-150 record.

Flint Northern: The Vikings last winning season was in 2001. The school has an 8-55 record over the last eight seasons.

Flint Central: After an impressive 11-1 season in 1993, the Indians/Phoenix had 10 losing seasons out of 15 with a combined record of 53-75. In their final season last year, Central went 3-6.

I can't help thinking what a great team the city would have if Flint had a single Class A high school for its approximately 2,700 students. An enrollment, by the way, that's getting smaller every year. But this isn't just about sports. Studies show that students have more academic resources in bigger schools, which are cheaper to run. And there are plenty of good high schools around the country with much larger enrollments. As painful as it was to lose Central, the city should probably close two more schools.

Making Sense of the Flint Board of Education

Seriously, if anyone can explain the Flint Board of Education to me, I'm all ears. As you may remember, the board opted to close Central High School, then refused to sell it to Powers High for relocation. Now there's a large empty building sitting in the heart of the cultural district.

Now comes this news from Melissa Burden of The Flint Journal:

The Flint Board of Education gave the OK today for two churches to meet for the next year in two closed school buildings.

The board in unanimous vote agreed to renew its lease with Cathedral of Faith Ministries Church of God in Christ at the closed Gundry Elementary School, 6031 Dupont St. on the city's north side.

It also 7-0 voted to a least part of the closed Longfellow Middle School building, 1255 N. Chevrolet Ave., to El Bethel Evangelistic Missionary Baptist Church, which has a Davison address.

Board members David Davenport and Stephanie Robb Martin were absent.

"I like to see the buildings being occupied," said Vera J. Perry, board president. "(I'm) happy to see churches in the buildings."

Really? So why is Central sitting empty while Powers continues to look for a new location?

According to an earlier item in the Journal, the board apparently wants to reopen Central in four years, or tear it down and build a new school. They just need to some how, some way scare up the millions to do it. Is there any plan whatsoever to make this a reality? Can anyone explain what the board is thinking when it comes to Central? And what sort of influence does the mayor's office have over the board?

Goodbye, Central High

One in a series of videos shot at the Flint Central High School farewell gathering on June 12, 2009.

Flint Central Meets an Uncertain Future

Some very mixed messages are emerging about the fate of Central High School. It seems clear it will close in June. But now school officials are hinting that they'd like to reopen the school at some point...provided that money magically materializes to renovate it. Or perhaps they'd tear it down and rebuild a new school...once they find the money. That's a bit like me saying I plan to turn Flint into hugely successful artists colony, once I get funding to make my dream a reality. Meanwhile, a group seems to be organizing to get Central on the National Register of Historic Places. No mention whatsoever about selling the building to Powers.

What are the odds that Central will sit vacant for years to come, a lost opportunity in the heart of the cultural district?