Aubrey Carr

The Detroit Monitoring Commission

Authors: Aubrey Carr (history), 2021 Winner ðŸ†

Faculty mentor: Kidada Williams

Abstract

In 1975, as a result of the Milliken v Bradley case, the supreme court decided that there was De Juro segregation happening through public school bussing in Detroit. However, it was Detroit's problem to take care of. After being sent back to the District Court, the burden to find a solution was placed into the hands of Judge Robert Demascio. His answer was to create the Detroit Monitoring Commission, a network of qualified scholars, lawyers, teachers, and other professionals to help implement plans for district-wide school improvement. The purpose of this research project was to take an in-depth look at the formation and effectiveness of the commission. While looking at scholarship by other historians, the commission was only briefly mentioned and the lack of research intrigued me. Using the records available in the Walter P. Reuther library, I was able to find out who the monitoring commission was, what their goals were, how they implemented them, and how effective they were. By researching the commission and finding out where they succeeded and where they failed, Detroit can use its past as a blueprint for school improvement in the future.

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