2026 DETROIT SCHOOL BOARD · CANDIDATE VIDEO SERIES
DANETTA L. SIMPSON
4-Year Term General Election Candidate
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Interviewer: “Detroit students need more...”
Danetta Simpson: Funding. They need more funding and more programs as far as vocational to be put back into the Detroit public school system.
Interviewer: Say a little more about that.
Danetta Simpson: And with the vocational because you got some students that that that learns, you know with the book sense and you got some students that are adjustable to their hands. Because I was a student in DPS I noticed that I was able to succeed in a vocational department. And with that being so, I became a cosmetologist. So we need more vocational training into the schools for as nursing, cosmetology, engineering and also mechanics, auto mechanics for auto industries and teaching, you know, students how to advance more successful than college classes.
Interviewer: Got it.
Danetta Simpson: You know and getting kids college ready, too.
Interviewer: Got it. So more funding for those vocational programs?
Danetta Simpson: And tutoring to help get their IQ on a certain level, because Detroit’s public schools, say my students are reading below grade level.
Interviewer: “As a student, I wish my school had...”
Danetta Simpson: I wish that my school had more of the vocational funding and tutoring and funding.
Interviewer: Got it. Just funding for just vocational and tutoring or anything else?
Danetta Simpson: Funding for the DPS school as far as the students being able to transportation, getting to and from school. And so to help put a program in place too to help the mothers, the fathers, the single parents mostly that can help, you know, to advance the the growth of DPS students. We want to grow together.
Who are the people running to help lead Detroit’s public schools?
In this CitizenDetroit interview series, hear directly from candidates running for the Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) Board of Education in their own words.
Each candidate answers the same questions about their priorities for Detroit students, what they would work to accomplish on the school board, and what they wish they had experienced when they were students themselves.
CitizenDetroit does not endorse candidates. This series is designed to give Detroit voters clear, accessible information about the people on the ballot so you can learn more and make your own decision.
🗳️ Make your voice heard in the November 3, 2026 election.
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Candidates appear in ballot order, alphabetical by last name.
Vote for not more than 4
Natalie Bien-Aime*
Steve Bland Jr.
Michelle Broughton
Katrina Brown
Cidney Calloway
Bobby Christian*
Nicole Conaway
Vilma Escamilla Duran
Daniel Ferguson III*
Duane Larry Grigsby Jr.
Bessie L. Harris
David Harris
C. Allan Hubbard
Henrietta Ivey*
Tabrian C. Joe
Shinese Johnson
Theodore Jones
Georgia Mae Lemmons
LaMar D. Lemmons
Clement O. Lett*
Phil Lloyd II
Darious Morris*
Liana Mulholland
Tyshea Pope
DaNetta L. Simpson
Tawanna Simpson
Jameel Montgomery Smith
Calesther Smith-Arnold*
Terry E. Whitfield
Elizabeth A. Williams
Theresa Williams*
* Did not participate in the CitizenDetroit candidate video series.
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Ijazz Jackson*
Aliya Moore
Shawn Vaughn
* Did not participate in the CitizenDetroit candidate video series.
4-YEAR TERM: CANDIDATE VIDEOS
Click any image to watch the candidates who accepted CitizenDetroit's invitation to be interviewed.
PARTIAL TERM: CANDIDATE VIDEOS
Click any image to watch the candidates who accepted CitizenDetroit's invitation to be interviewed.
