Ph.D. student wins Life-Changing Education Grant to study impact of super-philanthropy in Detroit
Leigh House, a doctoral candidate in Taubman College’s architecture program, received a Life-Changing Education Grant to research the impact of super-philanthropy on the built environment, as public funding for civic institutions has decreased over the years and been replaced by private donors.
As part of her project, Leigh will host a public workshop with Detroit’s Midwest-Tireman neighborhood community, U-M students, and community organizations, including Equity Alliance, Neighborhood Art School, and Sanctuary Farms, to engage in community-based research that critically examines citizens’ rights to the city and the institutions that facilitate or diminish the civil liberties of underrepresented communities.
The workshop will be developed as part of the Egalitarian Metropolis seminar and Initiative for Democracy and Civic Empowerment. Through participatory learning, hands-on research projects, and equitable engagement with community partners, students will build skills and knowledge to analyze and challenge the influence of philanthrocapitalist development and its impacts on civic development.
LCE grants are distributed on a rolling basis to projects that have demonstrated innovative approaches to teaching, collaboration, and connection to themes of Open Inquiry, Expanding Access, Campus of the Future, and Sharing Scholarship.
