Lottery money not benefiting struggling Detroit schools
DETROIT --The lottery boasts that the billions of dollars it rakes in go to help public schools in most states. Turns out in Michigan, that's not going too well.
Photos from Detroit's Public Schools tell the story of dilapidated buildings, many in need of emergency repair, and pest problems. A video shot Thursday by a student at a district high school shows a mouse inside the school.
Patrick Bosworth's son is in the eighth grade. He attends a language magnet school where he says classes are either way too warm, or freezing cold.
"He's going from one class to the other where he's wearing his short sleeved shirt, and then he's putting on his winter coat," said Bosworth.
Lottery dollars were designed to help schools like the ones struggling in Detroit. They're often advertised as giving a big boost to education.
But often, that's not the case. Twenty-seven states give lottery funds to education, but only eight spend it specifically on new programs like grants and scholarships.
The 19 others, including Michigan, do not use lottery profits as additional funding for public schools. Instead, it's used to fund the existing budget.
"Absolutely, it's misleading," said Michigan State Representative Sherry Gay-Dagnogo.
Gay-Dagnogo says people are led to believe that when they buy lottery tickets, they are helping education. "They are absolutely not benefiting education."
More than 740 million lottery dollars are given to Michigan schools each year. Gay-Dagnogo says there is no reason the buildings should be in such bad shape.
"I think our values, our priorities, are not aligned. Children are our future and we need to tell the truth. The lottery has not helped educate them since 1972."
