Kaiwan “Kai” Bowman loves being in service to his community by connecting people with new opportunities. As the chief operating officer of the Metro Detroit Black Business Alliance, he works to close the racial wealth gap for Black entrepreneurs.

“The U-M survey also helped CMHC see additional unmet needs of program participants due to inadequate workforce systems, as well as economic or racial inequalities in Detroit.”

~ Richard Cannon, executive director of the Church of the Messiah Housing Corp.

Average wages at payroll jobs in Detroit are expected to reach nearly $96,000 by 2028—40% higher than 2019—and average wage and salary income for employed Detroit residents should increase to roughly $50,000—42% higher than 2019. Unfortunately, however, inflation will claw back the significant majority of those gains.

I’ve always considered it a blessing that ever since I graduated from U-M, I’ve worked in municipal or nonprofit mission-based work… I really considered it quite an honor to be able to take everything that I’ve done within my career to bring me to this point.”

~ Meagan Dunn

Students live, learn and work within the city for one semester. The Semester in Detroit program, with its blend of academic study and hands-on community work, is unique.

After some summer internships, UM-Dearborn student Briana Hurt was transformed from a person who’d never grown anything but house plants to someone who cared deeply about agriculture and its potential to improve communities.

Jeffrey Morenoff co-founded the Detroit Metro Area Communities Study in 2016. The longitudinal survey provides valuable insights into the perceptions and attitudes of people who live and work in Detroit. Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan sought Morenoff’s expertise to investigate if and how the 2020 Census undercounted Detroit’s population.

The Detroit Neighborhood Entrepreneurs Project moves to the Ross School, but has always been a collaborative effort involving faculty from Ford, Ross and other schools as well as students from across campus. This includes those from the College of Engineering, Stamps School of Art & Design, Law School and School of Information.

Tee Rushdan arranged private meetings with the mayor and his staff to craft an exemption for farmers, as well as addressing questions about water and land access. “I said, ‘A lot of cities – Philly, New York – have installed directors of urban agriculture,” Rushdan explains. “’Let’s get somebody in the city that’s focused on that.’ I didn’t know it was going to be me.”