In a month, the school year starts on Bois Blanc Island, but one crucial element is still missing: a teacher.
The future of the tiny school of four students is uncertain as the island community faces a statewide teacher shortage, exacerbated by its remote location.
The island, just 34 square miles in size and home to just 100 residents, is the smallest school district in Michigan. Its isolation, compounded by harsh winters and reachable only by air, makes recruiting teachers a huge challenge.
“I tell everyone, ‘We’re remote Alaska without the mountains,’” said Christine Hasbrouck, a local grandparent and teaching assistant, Bridge Michigan.
Unlike the more populous Mackinac Island, Bois Blanc’s ferry service is shut down for much of the year, further isolating the community.
School starts on Bois Blanc Island in a month, but there is one crucial piece missing: a teacher
The future of the tiny school of four students is uncertain as the island community faces a statewide teacher shortage, exacerbated by its remote location.
The number of pupils in primary and secondary school fluctuated greatly. In 2019, the number of pupils dropped to just two.
Michigan once had nearly 7,000 one-room schoolhouses, but now only a handful remain, said Rochelle Balkam, president of the Michigan One Room Schoolhouse Association. The island’s school, technically a two-room building, reflects this historic model.
Isolated from the mainland for much of the year, Bois Blanc residents face unique challenges. Stocking up on groceries before the ferry stops running, and expensive flights are necessary in the winter. Finding a teacher for the island’s four students is an even bigger hurdle.
“Our challenge now…not only because of the island, but because of the way teachers are in this world right now, there’s such a shortage of them,” explained school board President Cindy Riker.
‘Finding an experienced teacher is probably out of the question.’
School Superintendent Angie McArthur said Thursday that the district is interviewing a potential teacher.
However, this person does not have the required teaching certification. In order to hire them, the district must apply for a long-term substitute license from the state.
The island is only 35 square miles in size and has a population of just 100. It is the smallest school district in Michigan.
The school’s remote location, combined with the harsh winters that are only accessible by plane, makes recruiting teachers a huge challenge
In addition, the candidate must enroll in a teacher training program in order to remain at the school for more than one year.
Michigan has recognized the teacher shortage in the state and is funding initiatives to strengthen the teaching force, such as “grow-your-own” programs.
According to school board chairman Riker, the Bois Blanc teacher serves multiple roles: he is an educator, mentor, principal and even a purchasing agent.
The unique environment enables personalized education, with teachers tailoring lesson plans to the pace of each student.
School board member Amanda Beugly said she would like to make the island her family’s permanent home. However, she said she will not allow her fifth-grade son and seventh-grade daughter Andrea to return to school unless there is a qualified teacher to teach them.
“I think it’s such a challenging position that you need that experience… because in a one-room school you don’t have the same support structure that you do in a regular school, where you have other teachers that you can go to for help,” Beugly said.
Andrea and her brother don’t want to leave the island. They go to virtual school, but their mother doesn’t want that to be permanent.
Superintendent Angie McArthur reported Thursday that the district is interviewing a potential teacher. However, that person does not have the required teaching certification. In order to hire them, the district must apply for a long-term substitute license from the state.
Some children on the island do not want to leave, but may have to because the secondary school is located elsewhere. Daily flights to the mainland would be impractical because of the high costs.
Andrea’s situation is complicated by the fact that she will be starting high school in two years. Her options are limited.
Daily flights to the mainland would be impractical because of the high cost. Chartering a flight to Cheboygan, for example, would cost them $222 per trip with a minimum of three passengers.
Hasbrouck, a former teaching assistant, praised the school’s previous teacher as “phenomenal.” Susan Rowell, the teacher herself, agreed, describing her teaching experience on the island as “magical.”
Drouare is a regular visitor to the island, but this is the first year her children have attended the local school. She said she thinks “a year or two [on the island] would just give the kids some perspective and… another chance.’
The family plans to reassess their situation this fall and decide whether to remain on the island or return to East Lansing, where Drouare’s husband and 13-year-old son will reside.
If the Drouare family leaves and the Beugly family does not return, Hasbrouck’s grandson could be the school’s only student.
Economic pressures and the trend toward school consolidation threaten the survival of small schools. Bois Blanc Island School, with a budget of just $245,000, spends a staggering $61,000 per pupil, nearly three times as much as Detroit Public Schools.
Economic pressures and the trend toward school consolidation threaten the survival of small schools. Bois Blanc Island School, with a budget of just $245,000, spends a staggering $61,000 per pupil, nearly three times as much as Detroit Public Schools.
Despite these challenges, Bois Blanc residents cherish their island lifestyle and hope to retain a full-time teacher. Drouare, who once went to school on a snowmobile, emphasized the unique experience that island life offers.
“I would love nothing more than for 10 families with 25 children to move to this island — and for that to be our problem,” Hasbrouck said.
If the school district can’t find a suitable teacher, they may have to bring in an outside teacher with an on-site teaching assistant. According to Principal McArthur, this is not an ideal solution.
Despite these challenges, Bois Blanc residents cherish their island lifestyle and hope to retain a full-time teacher. Drouare, who once went to school on a snowmobile, emphasized the unique experience that island life offers.
Hasbrouck expressed her reluctance to homeschool, believing that school provides essential structure and social learning, in addition to academics.
“That structure is part of what’s important,” Hasbrouck said. “They learn more than just the academic side. You learn a routine, you learn that this is how life works.”