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The Rev. Steven Bland Jr. spent Wednesday morning at a hospital counseling a household whose mom had a stroke and coronary heart assault.
“That’s the story of my life,” he stated. “Giving hope, you understand, in hopeless conditions.”
Within the afternoon, Bland arrived on the Fisher constructing forward of an lecturers committee assembly for the Detroit faculty district’s board — his first time taking part in a gathering as a sworn-in board member. Because the senior pastor of Liberty Temple Baptist Church for the final 21 years, Bland stated he hopes to hold his connections and advocacy in the neighborhood into public service.
“I’ve met lots of people — there’s an entire lot extra I haven’t — however I’ve been a group advocate for lots of points on lots of fronts,” he advised Chalkbeat. “I hope to show that into partnerships and alternatives the place folks could be heard.”
The Detroit Public Faculties Group District board voted to pick Bland to fill a vacant seat on Monday evening. The seat opened final month following Angelique Peterson-Mayberry’s resignation on July 2. Bland, 65, will end out her time period via the tip of 2026.
Board members are scheduled for as much as 60 conferences a 12 months, incomes as much as $250 a gathering.
Though he serves a congregation of about 1,800, Bland stated he needed to change into a board member due to his ardour for serving to uplift youth.
At his church, the pastor has helped develop new alternatives for youths in his group, together with a know-how middle that serves as a Wi-Fi hub for college students within the neighborhood to do homework.
He additionally leads the church’s ministry, Undertaking R.I.S.E., which stands for Rigorous Instruction to Complement Schooling. The tutoring program helps children with the topics they’re struggling in.
In the course of the utility course of for the board seat, Bland stated the largest challenges for the district shall be to keep up state funding within the wake of federal cuts and to handle its longstanding downside with power absenteeism.
Bland stated he’s heard via church outreach about systemic boundaries that may forestall Detroit children from getting to high school usually. A few of his ministry has addressed these gaps, equivalent to offering winter coats and new garments to children.
The brand new board member stated he created different church-school partnerships as a pacesetter on the Council of Baptist Pastors of Detroit.
Bland stated he’s been impressed by the “sturdy girls who imagine within the academic excellence of youngsters” round him.
His mom was a pacesetter in parent-teacher associations and a faculty liaison. His sister is a retired faculty principal. His spouse, additionally retired, taught at John R. King Educational and Performing Arts Academy. Certainly one of his daughters graduated from Renaissance Excessive Faculty and now works as a advisor to academic establishments.
Bland stated he’s additionally motivated to work in public training by his two granddaughters, ages 15 and seven, who dwell exterior of the Detroit space.
The pastor stated he’ll contemplate working for reelection in 2026, with enter from the opposite board members.
Hannah Dellinger covers Detroit faculties for Chalkbeat Detroit. You may attain her at hdellinger@chalkbeat.org.
