Studio: Service Design and Urban Needs
In this Urban Technology studio (UT 360), juniors engaged in an innovative collaboration with Let’s Grow Michigan and the Michigan Economic Development Corp. to unveil projects that featured service concepts to ease and enhance the “onboarding experience” of new Michiganders. The outputs of the course were three design concepts that proposed new ways in which Michigan might tout cultural heritage diversity, better use disused spaces in towns and cities and celebrate the unique qualities of its midsized cities.
MittenCorps is a novel talent-retention program connecting Michigan-educated graduates with mid-sized Michigan cities. Inspired by national programs like Teach for America and The Peace Corps and named after Michigan’s iconic mitten shape, MittenCorps aims to simultaneously retain the products of the state’s exceptional higher education institutions and bolster the workforce in midsize cities. The program is a holistic collaboration between cities, businesses, and people who are all-in on Michigan and looking for their next step. Whether they are a 20-something coming from one of the state’s flagship institutions or a working parent who has just completed their associate degree, MittenCorps is there to aid them in finding employment, housing, and community in a small Michigan city. The program partners with cities to identify jobs that fill essential areas of need, provide demand for new housing development, and integrate MittenCorps members socially into their new communities. Applicants accepted to the program join a cohort of like-minded individuals across a variety of professions, and over time will join the esteemed MittenCorps alumni network.
Students
Bella Kressaty, Emma Moore, Dylan Shefman, Owen Sims, Nate Coplan, Matt Kish