July 6, 2026, 6:03 a.m. ET This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters. Upbeat on-hold music blared from Jerrica Mickens’ cellphone for nearly 50 minutes as she searched on her laptop for affordable housing for a parent in Detroit. Mickens was on a three-way call with a mother and a legal aide hotline the morning of April 21 in her Central High School office.