BHAS hosts public meeting to keep high school from closing

Benton Harbor Area Schools board members hosted a public meeting Tuesday night to help save the high school from closing.

“One of the things that has been said to us is that the board, as was in the Governor’s press release, that we have no plan. That is not true," a Benton Harbor School board member said during Tuesday's community meeting.

Board members say the state took no action on two proposals they submitted. Their plan included a balanced budget for 2019-2020, but to move forward, they and some students believe the school’s debt should be forgiven.

“I asked for a fresh start. We deserve a fresh start as students who are the only ones suffering from everything that’s been happening," said Gregory Hill a Benton Harbor High School senior.

“It would be a shame to see our school close, because this is our home. We all grew up here, and we would rather graduate here," sophomore Kanijah Stokes said.

Many spoke to a packed auditorium inside Benton Harbor High School Tuesday night.

“Call it what it is. It is a racist plot," one person said.

“We've got to draw a line in the sand and say, ‘No more,'" another added.

“I think you have to muster all of your forces to make sure that they do not take this school away from you and shut it down," a third person said.

The push to save the district goes deeper than just one school.

“In black and brown communities, the school is an anchor, so when the school goes away, the community goes away," Michigan State Board of Education Vice President Pamela Pugh said. “We also see, in this case, where a high school may go away and the rest of the school district may remain, we see that the feeder schools begin to lose students.”

A representative for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer spoke in her absence. On Wednesday, Whitmer and Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist will host a town hall meeting for the public. It begins at 4 p.m. at Bishop Atterbury’s The Brotherhood of All Nations Church of God in Christ on Emery Street in Benton Harbor. Doors will open at 3:30 p.m.

For more information, the community is also invited to visit

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