For the first time in six years the Detroit Public Schools' proposed budget does not call for any schools to be closed.
The district expects it will bring in about $50 million fewer than it planned for next year. But officials say despite that, they are planning new programs and won't close any schools.
The idea is to keep the city's schools competitive with charters and suburban districts.
But there is still the matter of a $127 million deficit the Detroit school district is battling.
"The current plan has us in line to have a positive fund balance, meaning that the deficit would be eliminated, by the end of the 2017-2018 fiscal year," said DPS spokesman Steve Wasko.
The district plans to eliminate that deficit partly through early retirements and restructuring health benefits.
They’re not adjustments that would be felt negatively within the children’s classrooms across Detroit," added Wasko.
There will be a public hearing next Thursday to discuss the proposed budget.
– Reem Nasr, Michigan Radio Newsroom
