A Detroit high school principal made a bold decision that transformed her students’ lives by giving every single one of them a free bicycle, addressing chronic absenteeism in a way that goes far beyond just getting kids to class. Principal Michelle Davis of Davis Aerospace Technical High School watched as students like 17-year-old Elyazar Holiday struggled with a two-hour, four-bus commute covering 20 miles each way, knowing that Detroit’s limited yellow bus service and unreliable city transit system left many families without viable transportation options. The bikes, funded through community donations, helped nearly 100 students reduce walking time to bus stops, escape dangerous situations, and arrive at school on time instead of showing up exhausted or not at all. The school’s chronic absenteeism rate dropped by more than 14 percentage points in just one year, and has fallen nearly 23 percentage points since 2018.
But the impact went far beyond attendance numbers, as students discovered a newfound sense of freedom and independence that many had never experienced before. Teenagers used their bikes to get to after-school jobs, driver’s education classes, mentorship programs, and simply to explore their city with friends during summer breaks when they previously felt stuck at home. The bikes also provided a layer of safety in a city where many young people fear violence on their way to school, giving students the ability to quickly move between bus stops or escape threatening situations. Davis emphasized that while the bicycles solve one problem, her holistic approach includes providing free clothing, hygiene products, laundry facilities, and addressing every barrier that might keep a student from showing up ready to learn, proving that sometimes the most innovative solutions come from simply listening to what students actually need.
