UM-Dearborn faculty and students explore new opportunities with Southwest Detroit Schools

DETROIT.- On Friday, May 13, 2016, faculty and students from UM-Dearborn College of Education, Health, and Human Services enjoyed a delightful and informative morning as they went on a tour exploring the vibrant community of Southwest Detroit while visiting its most well-known public schools.

Ines De Jesus, coordinator of Community Schools
 program at Southwest Solutions, was the tour guide.

Associate Professor Martha Adler, Director of the Field Placement program in the college (CEHHS), decided to organize the tour to make faculty and students alike knowledgeable of the neighboring, largely Hispanic community, to UM-Dearborn. Even though there are some students who are already doing their practicums in some of these schools, the goal is to increase the college's presence in SW Detroit through more practicum placements and student teaching.

A year ago, UM-Dearborn and Southwest Solutions joined together to bring both communities closer and therefore, mutually benefit from each other’s assets. Ines De Jesus, coordinator of Community Schools program at Southwest Solutions, was the tour guide who led the group through the city's Hispanic neighborhood making stops at area public schools such as Bennett Elementary School and Western International High School.

The CEHHS group made its first stop
at Bennett Elementary School

De Jesus said that the objective of this tour is to show this neighborhood from a different perspective away from what is shown in the newspapers and on TV, but from a positive view as to engage UM-Dearborn students so they may be inspired to get involved in the local schools.

The group made its first stop at Bennett Elementary School which is well known for the quality of its teaching staff and which is working closely with CEHHS in the revival and upgrade of their library. Community School Site Coordinator at Bennett Kaity Nicastri who is part of the School Library Project, was the host during the walk-through of the Pre-K-5 facility.

On the way to the second scheduled visit, the group drove by Neinas Elementary School in which Associate Professor Chris Burke and his class are working on transforming empty lots into gardens. The group was also able to see other schools such as Harms Elementary School, a Michigan Department of Education "beat the odds" school. Clippert Academy Middle School well known for its professional staff and high achieving students; Academy of Americas K-8 known for its very committed parents and professional staff trained in full dual language Spanish-English immersion programs.

 

Inside Western International High School

The next stop was at Western International High School, the largest public school in the community with approximately 1700 students and offering a variety of extra-curricular programs in music, arts and sports. The group was able to see the well-kept facilities like the Olympic size swimming pool, the Henry Ford Health Clinic offering full services, the auditorium and the recently renovated performing arts and athletic wings. A third stop was at the recently opened Academy of Americas High School located next to St. Anne de Détroit Catholic church, which expands dual language opportunities for students in Spanish and English.

There were also some surprising visits that helped the group experience how engaged and bustling this community really is. Stops at the Ford Resource and Engagement Center as well as the Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation showed that Southwest Detroit is committed to a better way of life.

The group returned satisfied with positive comments about the experience. UM-Dearborn student Josselyn Gorman said the tour was "really informative as far as knowing how the community ties in with schools". Professor Danielle DeFauw said, "I just feel like there are so many people making such a difference and I cannot wait to collaborate with these individuals and continue to help push our students out of their comfort zone" and Professor Margaret Rathouz referred to Southwest Detroit schools as "the hub of the whole community" while Professor Chris Burke called it an "informative, inspirational and fun tour".

Overall, all participants were inspired with this community looking forward to expand projects in partnership with Southwest Detroit schools. 

Professors Chris Burke and Danielle DeFauw along with
student Josselyn Gorman buying mexican pastry
during a quick stop at a bakery in Southwest Detroit 

The final stop was at one of the most well known
restaurants in Southwest Detroit to enjoy authentic
Mexican food.

UMD Faculty and Students join Henry Ford Elementary for a Night of Engineering Fun

DEARBORN, MI - Professors Jeffrey Bouwman and Patricia Hartshorn from the UMD College of Education, Health, and Human Services participated on the third annual Family Engineering Night at Henry Ford Elementary in Dearborn on February 16, 2016 to show young students the hands-on fun of engineering.

More than 100 professors and their students from University of Michigan-Dearborn and Dearborn's Magnet Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Middle School turned out to staff two dozen stations.

Professor Hartshorn said this was the third year she brought some of her college students to help at this event. About 36 college students helped out. “It’s so much fun for the kids,” she said. “The mission is to get families engineering."

For professor Bouwman this was his first experience in this event and took along his STEM2 class, to help on the station for building parachutes. 

Professor Jeffrey Bouwman (wearing UM cap) and his students during
Family Engineering Night at Henry Ford Elementary

The challenge for the K-5 children was to construct a parachute that will float an action figure down from a second floor balcony. The children enjoyed building their own parachute and at the same time, they learned science concepts such as gravity, weight and time.

Professor Bouwman commented about this experience: “Simply put, Family Engineering Night at Henry Ford Elementary was awesome!  It was a great night of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics – STEM.  My EXPS 400/500 students and I had a blast working with some great students. Thank you to Professor Hartshorn and Henry Ford Elementary!”

Other stations included creating a boat to see how many pennies it would hold before sinking; stacking erasers on heavy paper supported by two cups to see how many of them the paper could hold and making mini windmills to learn about weather monitoring.

Center for Disparity Solutions and Equity holds strategy meeting

The Center for Disparity Solutions and Equity, a metropolitan-focused center for studying, researching, disseminating, and implementing promising evidence-based solutions to reduce disparities for a movement to equity in education health, and human services, held a strategy meeting on February 3, 2016.
 

 

In this image, are some of the topics
discussed during the center's strategy meeting

The dean of the College of Education, Health, and Human Services (CEHHS), Janine Janosky, UMD Faculty, Professional  Staff, and Community Leaders met to exchange ideas about the center's long term agenda. The discussion was facilitated by Renée Walker, president of "Renée Walker & Associates".

The list of attendees included:

- Amanda Ford, Public Allies Metro Detroit, Office of Metropolitan Engagement, UM-Dearborn
- Ann Lampkin-Williams, Ph.D., Senior Adviser to the Chancellor for Inclusion and Special Projects

- Christopher Burke, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Education Science and Education Director, Ed.S. & Ed.D Programs, CEHHS 

- David Law, Ph.D., Executive Director, Joy-Southfield Community Development

- Donald J. Bord, Ph.D., Professor of Physics (CASL) and Interim Chair, Department of Health and Human Services, CEHHS

- Janine E. Janosky, Ph.D., Dean, CEHHS

- Jennifer Teller, Ph.D., Program Director, CEHHS 

- Julie Roddy, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics, CEHHS

- Julie Taylor, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Social Studies and Multicultural Education, CEHHS

- Karen Thomas-Brown, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Social Studies, CEHHS

- Kelly Cronin, Directory of Development and University Initiatives

- Laura Reynolds, Ph.D., Associate Dean, and Associate Professor of Educational Psychology, CEHHS 

- Martha Adler, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Reading, Language Arts, and ESL, CEHHS

- Natalie Sampson, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Health and Human Services, CEHHS

- Renée T. Walker, APR, Renée Walker and Associates, LLC

- Susan Everett, Ph.D., Professor of Science Education and Chair of Department of Education, CEHHS

Renée Walker, president of "Renée Walker and Associates"
and Susan Everett, chair of CEHHS Department of Education,
talking after the meeting.

- Terri Laws, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of African and African American Studies (CASL) and Health and Human Services, CEHHS

- Tracy Thompson, Ph.D., Mental Health Therapist and Training Specialist, Inspiring One, LLC

- Truman Hudson Jr., Ed.D., Lecturer, Department of Education, CEHHS

The College of Education, Health, and Human Services continues its commitment to share its resources and expertise in service to the metropolitan community.

New collaboration between CEHHS and Southwest Detroit schools

DEARBORN, MI - On November 6, 2015 the College of Education, Health, and Human Services (CEHHS)  hosted a reception to welcome alumni, current students and prospective students from Southwest Detroit to the University of Michigan Dearborn.

Janine Janosky and Ines De Jesus

Dr. Janine Janosky, Dean of CEHHS and Ines De Jesus, coordinator of Community Schools program at Southwest Solutions welcomed the participants for an announcement of the newly formed collaboration to build a network of resources and support between our university and Southwest Detroit.
During the event, staff from the Office of Student Success provided information to the visiting students. Associate dean Dr. Laura Reynolds as well as department chairs Dr. Susan Everett (Education) and Dr. Julie Roddy (Health and Human Services) also participated in the event, presenting the different degrees and certifications that the college offers.

Attendees enjoyed light refreshments and ice-breaking activities while networking in what marked the starting point of a promising relationship between CEHHS and its neighboring community in Southwest Detroit.

CEHHS staff provides information to prospective students

CEHHS and Dearborn City Schools partner in English Language Arts project

DEARBORN, MI - CEHHS faculty member, Dr. Martha Adler was awarded a grant by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) to lead the project Improving Teacher Quality: Academic Competence and Language Proficiency for ALL.

This project, in partnership with Dearborn City Schools, was designed to provide teachers with the knowledge and strategies to design and implement lessons that address language acquisition and reading comprehension.
MDE has identified Dearborn City Schools eligible for this grant due to its over 72% district-wide poverty rate and its 9,006 underrepresented English-language learner student population. The project will provide 90 hours of professional learning to 30 participating teachers (15 in grades K-5 and 15 in grades 7-12) through coursework that can be applied toward the MDE English as a Second Language endorsement.

During the 2015-2016 year, the project will provide two 3-credit hour courses in a workshop format: The first course, Aligning Reading Theory and Best Practice to Curriculum and Instruction started in August 2015 and the second one, Second Language Teaching: K12 starts in January 2016. Both courses address student diversity, differing skill sets, background knowledge, and English language proficiencies.
The UM-Dearborn team includes three faculty members: Dr. Martha Adler, expert in Language Arts and ESL; Dr. Jaime S. Lee, expert in Second Language Acquisition and Dr. Laura Reynolds, expert in Assessment and Evaluation.
This project is another example of UM-Dearborn College of Education, Health and Human Services' commitment to support stronger outreach programs in local communities.

For more information about this project, please contact Dr. Martha Adler

Dean Janosky Highlights the Convergence of Employer-Educator Partnerships in Crain's Detroit Business News

To read full article on Crain's Detroit Business website click here

Increasing competitiveness in Detroit and Michigan requires multifaceted approaches that include educating and training a labor force for the technically advanced jobs of the future. Created through the intersection or convergence of disciples, integrated education and training programs, as well as employer-educator partnerships, can meet labor force demands while tackling problems otherwise deemed intractable.

The convergence of not only resources, including those of educational institutions and employers, but also disciplines within educational institutions, has tremendous potential to prepare the local and state labor force for current high-skilled, high-paying jobs as well as ensure an adequate pipeline of skilled workers for future jobs.

This proactive approach is also taking the form of employer-educator partnerships, such as those facilitated by the Aspen Institute's Skills for America's Future program, which fosters connections between community colleges and employers. More often, employer-educator partnerships have been initiated by employers in their local communities; for example, partnerships between the Boeing Co. and educational institutions, which range from pre-kindergarten to college levels, have informed curricula to align with their current and future labor force needs. 

Educational institutions have started to evolve to meet labor market needs in the public health sector. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, health care and social assistance jobs in December 2014 accounted for 17 percent of the total job openings, up from 14 percent the previous year. 

In addition, employment of health educators and community workers is projected to grow 21 percent from 2012-22, faster than the average for all occupations. 

Further development in this area could be advantageous for Detroit and Michigan. As an example, integrative education and training programs focusing on community health have the potential to dramatically impact competitiveness and productivity, especially given that the economic vitality of a community is highly dependent on the health of the citizens. 

In addition to simply having adequate numbers of healthy individuals to contribute to the labor force, businesses increasingly consider the health of the population prior to moving to or expanding within a particular geographical location due in large part to the impact of preventable, chronic disease (e.g., obesity and Type 2 diabetes) in terms of health care costs and lost productivity through absenteeism and presenteeism. 

Preparing our workers for these technically advanced jobs of the future requires that educational institutions design new, innovative programs at the intersection of disciplines, as recommended by the U.S. Council on Competitiveness. Through the convergence of disciplines as well as partnerships between employers-educators, the available and ready labor force within Detroit and Michigan could be strengthened, resulting in increased competitiveness.