News + Stories

  1. Stamps instructor Jessica Frelinghuysen focuses performance art on the human experience

    Jessica Frelinghuysen has a studio in Detroit at ​“Cave,” an artist collective. It is there where she connects with the community through her work as a performance artist. In describing her creative practice, Frelinghuysen explains that it is focused on social dynamics and how human beings operate. Her work has taken on many forms over the years, with many of her creations taking the form of wearables that make a point about the human experience. 

  2. No ride, no health care: New project provides ‘mobility wallets’ to get residents medical appointments

    Two University of Michigan researchers are part of a community-based research project to get Detroit- and Dallas-area residents to doctors’ appointments, pharmacies and other health care services that often are skipped or inaccessible due to a lack of transportation.

  3. Dean Elizabeth Moje named a 2023 Crain’s Detroit Business Notable Leader in Higher Education

    Dean Elizabeth Moje has been recognized by Crain’s Detroit Business as a 2023 Leader in Higher Education. Moje is among 26 honorees who were nominated by their peers, companies, and community.

  4. Detroit Public Television airs ‘The Pioneers of Marygrove’

    A new documentary features the Class of 2023, the first high school students to graduate from The School at Marygrove. Featuring Marsal School Dean Elizabeth Moje, The School at Marygrove Principal Lisa Williams, teachers, and members of the Class of 2023, Detroit Public Television recently aired The Pioneers of Marygrove. Opened in 2019 on the campus of the former Marygrove College in Northwest Detroit, the school offers a unique opportunity for students to engage in project- and placed-based learning with a focus on STEM and social justice.

  5. A Lifelong Dream

    Elizabeth James, now a program manager with the LSA Department of Afroamerican and African Studies, was nearly three years old when her grandmother packed a lunch for the two of them and set out to join a walk that was part of the Civil Rights Movement. It was June 23, 1963 ,and the event was officially called the Detroit Walk to Freedom.

  6. OVPR anti-racism grants awarded to seven research teams

    The Office of the Vice President for Research has awarded nearly $450,000 in grants across seven research teams to investigate the effects of systemic racism and inform strategies to combat them. These include two project teams working on Detroit topics.

  7. Faculty Q&A: Dana Thompson teaches law students to make a hands-on difference

    For Michigan Law faculty member Dana Thompson, the law isn’t just a profession. It’s a way to bring about economic change and further social justice. Thompson was born in Detroit and is a true Motowner – her father worked for Motown Records as a writer, arranger, and lyricist. She leads the Detroit-based Community Enterprise Clinic that connects law students with clients in the city.

  8. U-M alum Joshua Sirefman readies Michigan Central for 2024 opening

    Joshua Sirefman leads what some see as the most important economic development project in Michigan. Sirefman is chief executive officer of Michigan Central, a sprawling, 30-acre mobility district centered at the historic, but long-abandoned Michigan Central Station in Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood.

  9. Poverty Solutions research, evaluation services advise Detroit Financial Well-Being Innovation Challenge programs

    Detroit Greenways Coalition, Doing Development Differently in Metro Detroit (D4), GreenPath Financial Wellness, Southwest Economic Solutions Corporation, and Communities First Inc. were recently awarded grants of up to $200,000 each from United Way for Southeastern Michigan – a total investment of more than $1 million – to pilot their ideas as part of the Detroit Financial Well-Being Innovation Challenge.