Benton Harbor residents attend community outreach meeting

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. – The Benton Harbor Community Engagement Advisory Committee hosted a community outreach meeting on Tuesday aimed at discussing ways to solve the academic and financial issues facing Benton Harbor Area Schools.

Residents were encouraged to attend the meeting and provide input on the issues.

Joyce Parker, a Michigan State Treasurer, was at the meeting to participate in the discussion, and she said that solving the issues will require a full community effort.

"This is a new process, and certainly we are interested in having all segments of the community participate,” Parker said. “So as we move forward, we are going to reach out and ask members of the community to help us get the message out so others can participate in the process as well."

The people who attended the meeting voiced their concerns about Benton Harbor Schools, asserting that what children need is a strong education.

Turnout for the meeting, however, was low, and residents were critical of the fact that the meeting was not adequately publicized, saying that residents were being left in the dark on what is going on.

Parker assured the community that she would all do she can to inform the community about future meetings.

“You know, we didn't have one hundred people here, but we certainly had a good representation of the Benton Harbor community and we were able to get their comments in terms of what they think are the areas the community is most proud of and areas where there's need for additional work," Parker also said.

Residents say they hope to see city thrive in the future.

The next community outreach meeting is scheduled for December 17 at the Benton harbor Public Library.