About us

No. But generally speaking, we encourage school districts to follow the advice of public health authorities (e.g., the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). We believe that public health authorities and medical experts should take the lead in determining how schools respond to public health emergencies.

No. A2R2 is non-partisan. We work on issues that cut across the political spectrum.

• Restore reliable, full-time, in-person school in AAPS.
• Rectify the harms of pandemic school closures.
• Advocate for decisions and policies that are transparent, evidence-based, informed by community and expert input, and sensitive to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Urge AAPS not to replace teachers, tutors, or other in-person educational experiences with technology or online devices.

• We continuously increase awareness within the community of AAPS policies, school board discussions, and emerging data on pandemic schooling.
• We hosted rallies to promote the return to in-person school.
• We regularly speak and submit public commentary to board of education meetings (both local and state), and encourage the community to do the same.
• We attend and speak at state education committee meetings.
• We meet with candidates for public office to educate them and discuss how they can help achieve our goals.

We follow scientific evidence, speak with experts, and listen to the community. A core principle is that in-person education is important for children. Our invaluable teachers cannot be replaced by devices. With the starting assumption that virtual school during a pandemic has possible harms and benefits, we form our positions based on scientific knowledge and our value of in-person school and teaching and then update them based on emerging evidence.

In February 2021, when A2R2 was still a loosely affiliated group of parents, we hosted a fundraiser to support efforts to reopen Ann Arbor Public Schools (which at that point had been closed for nearly a year). Hundreds of families responded, donating over $40,000 in two days. This offset various costs. For instance, it covered the formation of a legal entity to manage back-to-school advocacy efforts. It paid for Freedom of Information Act requests, used to bring transparency and accountability to the actions of AAPS leaders. It funded research into possible legal avenues for getting kids back in classrooms. These activities represent a fraction of the work undertaken by A2R2. Most of this work is powered by local volunteers--AAPS parents and other community members. They donate their time to advance the goals of restoring reliable in-person school and repairing harms of school closure in Ann Arbor. We have an amazing community and are grateful for their generosity.

No. In March 2021, Nicholas Bagley, a U-M law professor who now serves as chief legal counsel to Governor Whitmer, wrote an open letter to Michigan lawmakers. He urged them to adopt appropriations law that requires districts to provide full-time in-person school. Professor Bagley and another AAPS parent elaborated on the letter’s goals in a Detroit News op-ed. That article cited the known harms of protracted school closures. It advocated for a virtual option for families who wanted it, and noted that Governor Whitmer or her public health director could be given authority to close schools in response to health emergencies. 

A2R2 did not play a role in drafting the letter. After it had been released by Professor Bagley, we supported and circulated it. The letter received well over a thousand signatures, many from Ann Arbor. The requirement for full-time in-person school was incorporated into HB 4411, a historic bipartisan funding bill signed by Governor Whitmer.