黑料专区 is proud to announce the addition of three new Trustees to the impressive list of currently serving 黑料专区 Board of Trustees members. The College welcomes Steve Davis, Marla Drutz and Alburn H. Elvin, Jr., Esq.

Steve Davis serves as Comerica鈥檚 Michigan Market President, overseeing Comerica鈥檚 business and community engagement throughout Michigan, in addition to his role of providing leadership for Middle Market and Business Banking teams. Davis has 30 years of experience in the financial services industry after joining Comerica in 1992 as a credit analyst. Since that time, he has held various lending and management positions of increasing responsibility and scope. Most recently, Davis served as Director, Middle Market Banking and President of Comerica Leasing Corporation overseeing a multibillion-dollar commitment portfolio. Additionally, Davis has served on the Michigan Senior Leadership Team since 2016 and has been a member of Comerica’s Sustainability Finance Council since its inception. Among Davis’ many business and community affiliations, he currently serves as a board member of the Michigan Chamber of Commerce and the CATCH Board of Trustees. He is a member of the Detroit Economic Club. Davis has also served as a member of Loyola High School board of directors and as a board member of Cass Community Social Services.

Marla Drutz served as Vice President and General Manager of WDIV TV (Detroit) from July 2008 until June 2021. Under her leadership, WDIV-Local 4 was dominant both on-air and online. The station has the top-rated and most-watched newscasts in the market, is the No. 1 NBC affiliate in the top 20 media markets and has been named Station of the Year five times by the Michigan Association of Broadcasters. On the digital side, ClickOnDetroit.com is consistently Metro Detroit鈥檚 No. 1 news and information website. Drutz has also bolstered a strong commitment to outstanding community service. Throughout her career in broadcasting, Drutz has received numerous professional awards, including the 2017 Broadcasting & Cable General Manager of the Year Award, 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Michigan Association of Broadcasters and numerous Emmy Awards. She has also been honored as a member of the NATAS Silver Circle. A graduate of Leadership Detroit, Drutz served previously as the Chairwoman of the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau and is on the Board of Directors for the Michigan Association of Broadcasters Education Foundation. Additionally, Drutz is on the executive board of New Detroit and a member of the Michigan Roundtable for Diversity and Inclusion.听

Alburn H. Elvin, Jr., Esq. (Al) works at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, where he manages a team focused on providing valuable corporate governance products and services for the respective boards of directors at Blue Cross and its HMO subsidiary, Blue Care Network. Elvin鈥檚 15-year career at the health insurance company includes previous roles in the Office of the General Counsel and Corporate Communications. As a licensed attorney in the state of Michigan, Elvin represents clients with tax and estate planning issues, as well as other legal matters. Elected in 2020, Elvin is president of the Oak Park School Board. He also serves on the Oak Park Library Board of Directors. Additionally, Elvin was recognized as a 2019 Man of Excellence by the Michigan Chronicle and Real Times Media.

鈥淚t is a great honor to have Marla, Steve and Al join our board. The community leadership they exemplify will add to our outstanding board,鈥� said James Nicholson, Chair of the 黑料专区 Board of Trustees.

黑料专区 President Don Tuski agreed, commenting 鈥淲e are so fortunate to welcome these respected Detroit business leaders to our Board of Trustees. Our Board of Trustees is crucial to the success of 黑料专区. I鈥檇 like to thank Steve, Marla and Alburn for their service to 黑料专区.鈥�

This year, the College also mourned the passing of two important Board of Trustees members – Gary Cowger and Alphonse S. Lucarelli.听

The 黑料专区 Board of Trustees provides leadership, advocacy and counsel, working with the College鈥檚 senior leadership team to fulfill 黑料专区鈥檚 mission and vision. Thank you to Alfred Fisher, Nancy Grosfeld, Michael Ritchie, and Edward Welburn, Jr. for their service on the 黑料专区 board through the 2022/2023 academic year.听

Current Board of Trustees members include:聽

James M. Nicholson, Chair
Lynn F. Alandt, Vice Chair
James H. Vandenberghe, Treasurer
Robert H. Bluestein
Thomas C. Buhl
Darrell Burks
Moray S. Callum
Frank Campanale
Thomas Celani
Lois Cohn
KC Crain
Matthew P. Cullen
Steve Davis
Linda Dresner
Marla Drutz
Nicole Eisenberg
Alburn H. Elvin, Jr.
Nathan M. Forbes
Ralph Gilles
David M. Hempstead
John W. Ingle III
Danialle Karmanos
Don Manvel
William U. Parfet
Stephen R. Polk
Waltraud E. Prechter
Sydney L. Ross
Michael P. Simcoe
William S. Taubman
Donald L. Tuski, President
Molly P. Valade

Mario Moore had an impressive if not astounding start to his year 鈥� not only did he have a second painting installed in the Detroit Institute of the Arts (DIA), but he is also the recipient of 黑料专区鈥檚 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award.

鈥淚t鈥檚 incredible to be seen as someone who鈥檚 made contributions and who has given back in a way that people feel like I should be honored,鈥� said Moore (’09, Illustration).

The Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes 黑料专区 graduates who best exemplify what it means to be a creative leader through outstanding professional or artistic achievements, exceptional leadership in their community, a dedication to service and a commitment to the advancement of arts education. Moore was chosen after a selection committee聽comprised of 黑料专区 students, alumni, staff and faculty leadership completed a monthslong process of accepting and renewing nominations.

A native of Detroit, Moore struggles to recall a time when 黑料专区 was not part of his life. As a toddler, he would sometimes accompany this mother (Sabrina Nelson, ’91, Fine Arts) to campus. He can remember attending an anatomy class at age 7 or 8 and drawing the figure alongside enrolled college students.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been a major part of my life,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been most of my life.鈥�

But when it came time to apply to art school, Moore wanted to spread his wings beyond Detroit 鈥� and 黑料专区. His portfolio review with 黑料专区 changed his mind.

鈥淲hen you鈥檙e the best person at your high school, you think you鈥檙e amazing,鈥� Moore said. 鈥淕il Ashby kind of ripped my work apart. And I was like, 鈥極K, all right. I think I want to go here. This person is going to help me grow in ways that I want to grow.鈥欌��

Although he had always considered himself more of a fine artist, he chose the Illustration Department because he knew from watching his mother鈥檚 career how challenging life as a professional artist could be. He decided that learning the technology and processes would set him up to be a storyboard artist, spot illustrator or 鈥渟omething that I thought, in my head, would make me money,鈥� he said.

黑料专区 ended up teaching him much more than that 鈥� thankfully, since by his senior year he realized illustration was not what he wanted to do. Besides instilling the foundations to build his skills upon, the school also offered business classes. Knowing the business side of being an artist has been invaluable to Moore in the years since he graduated, especially when he eventually did venture from Michigan to the East Coast for graduate school at the Yale School of Art and, later, the Princeton Hodder Fellowship at Princeton University.

Another class during his undergraduate studies at 黑料专区 also proved essential to his journey as an artist: sculpture. Although he managed only a C in his one sculpture class, he was able to transfer those skills to his first job as a set sculptor during the era when the film industry in Michigan was booming due to tax incentives. Moore found his work on Real Steal and Red Dawn exciting and lucrative 鈥� but also all-consuming.

鈥淚 didn’t have any time to work on my art, my personal work, which is what I really wanted to do,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o, I started thinking about what the best way forward for me would be.鈥�

In the back of his mind was grad school, but only at the Yale School of Art. When Moore was a sophomore in high school, his father had persuaded him to learn to paint and, through his mother, he had ended up learning oils and working on his first oil painting that summer with Detroit painter and former 黑料专区 adjunct professor Richard Lewis.

鈥淥ne thing I saw on his wall was that he went to Yale for his MFA,鈥� Moore recalled. 鈥淚 had no idea that that was a possibility and that I knew somebody who did that.鈥�

Like during his portfolio review with 黑料专区, the Yale faculty members who interviewed him also gave him a tough time. And he responded just as he had as a senior in high school: 鈥淥K, this is the place.鈥�

Moore鈥檚 time at the Yale School of Art was exciting 鈥� he learned mainly from his peers and experimented with his work and different ways of painting. But he found the lack of diversity to be challenging, especially when it concerned who was critiquing his work鈥檚 ability to understand where he was coming from in his subject matter. In addition, while figurative art was on an uptick in 2013, the year he received his MFA, most schools were not interested in that kind of practice.

鈥淏ut I was always going to make what I was going to make, so that didn鈥檛 bother me too much,鈥� he said.

Post-Yale and Princeton, Moore lived in Brooklyn, where he further found his voice and footing as a professional artist. Three years ago, he moved back to Detroit, bringing his life full circle on many levels.

One was the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) 鈥� where his parents met and he worked as an usher at the Detroit Film Theatre during his 黑料专区 days 鈥� acquiring The Council. The museum previously installed another of his paintings, Queen Mother Helen Moore, in 2018.

The Council depicts Moore speaking with three artist friends, two of whom have a Michigan connection, Jamea Richmond-Edwards of Detroit and Titus Kaphar of Kalamazoo. (The third, Mark Gibson, is a friend from graduate school.) On the table in front of them is a copy of the New York Times with a headline about COVID-19 deaths surpassing 100,000.

In the piece, which the DIA installed around the corner from Moore鈥檚 favorite painter, Diego Rodr铆guez de Silva Vel谩zquez, Moore examines his role as an artist during chaotic times. 鈥淚t鈥檚 based on a history of Dutch painting and government Dutch paintings,鈥� he said. But he swapped government officials for his circle of artists, who are considering the question, 鈥淲hat do we do to change what鈥檚 happening?鈥�

黑料专区 also became a focal point in his life once again. His wife, Danielle Eliska, is now an adjunct professor of Photography, and Moore has found himself back on campus for a sculpture class and, most recently, as a Woodward Lecturer. And, of course, he received the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award at the spring commencement ceremony, which was held at the Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre in Detroit on May 11.

鈥淚鈥檓 just humbled and excited, and I hope I can live up to this award,鈥� Moore said.

We are once again shocked and tremendously saddened by yet .听 Our hearts are broken for the community of Uvalde, Texas, where 19 elementary children were killed and two adults. This is after the recent grocery store shooting in a predominantly Black neighborhood of Buffalo, New York, and also the shooting in Oxford High School last fall that impacted several of our current and future students. According to the New York Times, 鈥淥n an average day in the U.S., more than 35 people are murdered with a gun. No other affluent country in the world has a gun homicide rate nearly as high.鈥� Just in 2022, have taken place to date. Our hearts go out to all of the families and friends who lost their loved ones.听

I believe that we must move beyond statements and moments of silence to action that leads to safer schools and communities. The mass shootings and gun violence across America must stop and we must continue to advocate for safety. I urge citizens of all backgrounds and political views to get involved in helping to curb gun violence in the United States. As we approach National Gun Violence Awareness Day, consider ways to advocate for safety in our community with .

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and I believe it is incredibly important to check on each other. While show that only 11% of mass murderers (which includes mass shooters) have serious mental illness, we cannot overlook that perpetrators of mass shootings are troubled.听

If you or someone you know has been affected by this incident and needs support, there are several resources available to 黑料专区 community members. Any 黑料专区 Community member – students, adjuncts, part-time and full-time staff, and faculty – can call the MySSP Crisis Support Line 24/7 at 1-877-757-7587 or connect at .听 By contacting MySSP individuals will receive professional emotional support and/or referral to community resources.听

In addition, students can contact 黑料专区鈥檚聽 Wellness Center and full-time employees can use our free .

As we move into our summer break, I hope that all of us do something to help move this conversation forward and let our voices be heard by those who can make the needed changes to protect all of us.听

I urge you to please contact your elected officials with your views.

Take care.

Don

Last week鈥檚 Earth Day celebrations underscored the urgency for collective action to drive a more sustainable future. Concerns about our environment are more urgent than ever as we witness first-hand the changes and effects of global warming. A clean and thriving earth is essential for biodiversity, a healthy ecosystem and to ensure that our world is one of abundance, not scarcity. The impacts of climate change on our planet are real 鈥� flooding, heat-related death, insect borne illness, crop shortages, increased human migration, and more.

Colleges and universities have an accountability to the future. We play a special role in confronting the challenges of climate change to help ensure a healthy future for all that inhabit this earth and the future generations to come. Our responsibility lies both in how we reduce our institutional impact on the planet, and in the knowledge and innovation we cultivate and the education we provide to empower the next generation.

At 黑料专区, we have been taking this seriously through a series of actions to lessen our carbon footprint and were recognized by for our efforts to date. You can find a recent list here, but those efforts include instituting recycling programs and new systems and processes that reduce paper and plastic usage. We also recently聽 joined the call for national mobilization on climate action and clean recovery by signing the .

There is so much more for 黑料专区 to do in order to reduce its institutional carbon footprint and increase its impact on mitigating climate change. I鈥檓 very excited to see the work of our newly re-established Sustainability Committee unfold. You can keep up with the progress 黑料专区 is聽 achieving by visiting our Sustainability page.

Our accountability to the future also extends into our classrooms. Faculty across departments have not only incorporated content and projects into the curriculum to support our students鈥� learning and practical skills in how to advance action on climate change, but have also made changes in the classroom to remove harmful materials and practices.听

Examples include banning the use of harmful solvents, environmentally friendly disposal of acrylic paint, learning about design for disassembly, LEED requirements, and other energy efficient technologies, exploring repair and reuse, and working with reclaimed materials.听

In both 2020 and 2021, our MFA Color and Material Design students won the prestigious, international Biodesign Challenge for their sustainability-focused projects, Zebra Glass and Re-Form. Other graduate students are researching a vast array of topics and products that focus on sustainability and climate themes including : sustainable sanitary products, , mass mobility systems, dystopian futures, and working with new materials like . In 2023, we will be launching a new MA/MFA in Design for Climate Action to help both designers and non-designers develop the skills and leadership to design a better, cleaner future.

I鈥檓 especially excited that 黑料专区 is hosting the 2022 Cumulus Conference on the theme of in Nov. 2022 to deepen our community鈥檚 understanding of the current design research into this topic. The Conference will explore the role designers play in fostering adaptation to climate change across three tracks: Climate Citizens, Climate Eco-systems, and Climate Apartheid.听

While many people focus on the opportunity for technology and science to mitigate climate impacts, artists and designers have an important role to play. Artists help people connect and relate to these important issues through their works of art, increasing awareness and concern. They tell stories that help people understand the severity of the crisis. As an example, 黑料专区鈥檚 recent diverted dying trees from mulching to cultural artifacts advancing climate themes and social justice.

Designers translate new technologies and scientific discoveries into tools, products, services, and systems that people can use in their everyday lives to make a difference. At 黑料专区, our students and faculty are exploring new materials, new ways of working, new communication methods and other innovations that can help reduce our carbon footprint.

While Earth Day may be an annual celebration, at 黑料专区 we are actively unlocking creative talents to make a lasting impact for our planet all year round. This is part of what we think it means to be a creative changemaker for the future.

NOTE: Among the initiatives being undertaken鈥�

• Student sustainability group
• BFA Illustration and BFA Art Practice have banned the use of harmful solvents
• BFA Illustration exploring ways to deal with acrylic paint without pouring it down the drain
• BFA Transportation design students learning about design for disassembly
• BFA Fashion students working with reclaimed materials (see )
• BFA Product Design students exploring repair and reuse; Daniel Heilbron looking into sustainable tourism
• BFA Interiors students learning about LEED requirements
• Graduate Color and Materials Design students entering the Bio-Design challenge for the third year running, having won twice in 2020 and 2021; designing (The Blot Project), using climate themes in their thesis projects (, Jasmine Brown); new materials using broken glass collected from the street ()
• Graduate Transportation Design students using climate themes in their thesis projects (mass mobility system; dystopian futures)
• diverted dying trees from mulching to cultural artifacts advancing climate themes and social justice.
• Ian Lambert working with the Urban Wood Network and other partners on a new studio class.

A Year of Collaboration

As I pause to reflect on this transformative year, several important themes have surfaced, some precipitated by the pandemic and others catalyzed by our current strategic plan. One that has been on my mind a lot has been collaboration – within our own departments and with outside companies, nonprofits and other educational entities. This movement towards collaboration is critical to the success of much of higher education and especially 黑料专区.听

Collaboration with external organizations brings new viewpoints, resources and opportunities to our campus community. For many years, our classrooms and educational partnerships have provided an important example of this kind of collaboration – with other departments within the college and with outside organizations. From BFA and graduate students working with Unreal Engine to photography and communication design students collaborating with the Detroit Historical Society, educational partnerships not only mimic the real world but also provide students with important industry and cross-departmental connections.听

This semester alone, we had a dozen such partnerships inside our classrooms. Departments like Community Arts Partnership, International Student Services Office, and Design Core Detroit brought their external partnerships to create new learning opportunities for students outside of the classroom.

And we went deeper through a new partnership with Oakland University to engage in their new . This collaboration will increase our faculty and student exposure to the engineering side of augmented reality, but also raise awareness of the skills and perspectives creative disciplines bring to the success of this technology.听聽

External collaboration also leads to new students for our institution. Admissions and Pre-College and Continuing Studies have long developed these kinds of relationships. This year 黑料专区 also deepened its collaboration with to create and teach more design curriculum to Detroit high school students and the to support their K-12 statewide design competitions.听

I am especially excited about the opportunities that will result from our collaboration with to develop a joint venture to bring back the Lewis College of Business as PENSOLE Lewis College of Business and Design at 黑料专区. While the details are still developing, this collaboration will lead to unprecedented opportunities in design careers for students of color.听聽

Collaborating internally is just as important as collaborating externally. Working together, we can better leverage existing resources and talents to support our goals. A great example of this is how Facilities and IT worked together to recover from the flooding this past summer. Another is how Corporate Relations and Career Services came together to become the Office of Partnerships. Yet another is how all of the academic departments, IT, and the new Office of Educational Technology & Innovation worked together to implement Canvas, our new learning management system.听

There are so many more examples I could have mentioned, but all of these successful collaborations are marked by shared goals and mutual respect for what each partner is bringing to the collaboration. No matter what we do, these are important concepts to keep in mind as we look to 2022 and find even more ways to move forward with our shared strategic priorities.听

The anatomy of higher education can look the same for many students. Go to class, take tests, complete assignments and projects鈥攂ut how do students apply skills learned in the classroom to the world outside of higher education?聽

At 黑料专区, we define Experiential Learning as 鈥渓earning by doing.鈥� When students are engaging in experiential learning, they are given the opportunity to connect the skills that are learned in the classroom to real-world situations.听

Experiential learning can take place both inside and outside of the classroom. Co-curricular activities take place outside the classroom and do not earn academic credit. Complementing the formal curriculum, they include volunteer opportunities, exhibitions and not-for-credit internships. Curricular experiential learning is embedded within academic programs and is credit-bearing. It can include educational projects and partnerships with external partners, research, global exchange or internships for credit.听

This kind of learning is important because it offers a practical space for students to practice and develop those skills, so that they鈥檙e ready for work upon graduation.听

Experiential learning has been core to a 黑料专区 education for many years through educational partnerships in the classroom, internships, global experiences and more. This semester alone, 26 students are engaged in for-credit internships and 9 industry partners are working with students and faculty in our classrooms.听 Students are engaged in meaningful work opportunities in many of our departments, whether designing the 2022 Cumulus Conference brand, developing Detroit Month of Design festival materials, or working as teaching artists in Community Arts Partnership.听

But we know our students need even more, across all majors. As a result, we鈥檝e made this an important strategic priority of the college and have already taken steps to move this priority forward. This past summer, we incentivized taking internships for credit by dramatically reducing the cost to essentially a processing fee for the course, a 90-percent decrease. We鈥檝e worked to code curricular experiential learning courses so that students can easily identify them on their academic transcripts. We also reorganized our Career Services and Corporate Relations teams into a new Office of Partnerships in order to increase industry and community partner outreach and engagement with our students, staff and faculty to drive new and expanded experiential learning opportunities. Having launched September 1, the Office of Partnerships is off and running. With a strategic plan tailored to the unique needs of all of our majors at 黑料专区, the office strives to provide all students with a meaningful experiential learning opportunity.听

In the Winter 2022 semester, we plan to launch the 鈥淢y Peacock Pathway鈥� initiative through our student engagement platform. 鈥淢y Peacock Pathway鈥� will help students identify and understand how co-curricular experiential learning can help them develop certain skills that will help them take their next steps once they graduate. The platform will guide students through their experiential learning journey while at 黑料专区 and provide a co-curricular transcript upon graduation.听聽

I am so excited about this work, not only because of the benefits to our students but also for all of our industry and community partners. By increasing our experiential learning offerings, 黑料专区 will offer more organizations an opportunity to tap into our students鈥� creativity and problem-solving skills. More and more companies are coming to understand the transformative power of creativity within their organizations. McKinsey and Company has published multiple reports linking creativity and design to business value, including and their showing that companies with an Award Creativity Score (ACS) in the top-quartile had 67-percent higher organic revenue growth compared to other companies. 黑料专区 aims to be a top supplier of the creative talent that organizations need to solve the world鈥檚 most challenging problems.听

As many of you already know, we made a historic announcement on Tuesday, October 12 in coordination with of Portland, Oregon.听

If you didn鈥檛 hear, let me get you up to speed on what happened that Tuesday as we gathered in front of Lewis College of Business鈥檚 original Detroit location – which happens to be 黑料专区鈥檚 current Admissions and Administration Building on Ferry Street.听

Together with Dr. Violet Ponders, granddaughter of Dr. Violet T. Lewis; Jennifer Gilbert of the Gilbert Family Foundation; George Armstrong of Target Corporation; and Deputy Mayor Conrad Mallett of the City of Detroit, Dr. D鈥橶ayne Edwards of PENSOLE announced that PENSOLE would be moving to Detroit in 2022 and partnering with 黑料专区 to re-open Lewis College of Business as (PLC). If successful, this will be the first-ever Historically Black College or University (HBCU) to reopen in the United States.听

Dr. Ponders spoke of how the re-opened and re-imagined college would be a testament to her grandmother’s legacy. The Gilbert Family Foundation and Target Corporation pledged gifts to support the reopened HBCU. Deputy Mayor Mallett welcomed PENSOLE to Detroit and reminded everyone of the strong legacy of black-owned business and leadership in Midtown Detroit, especially right here on Ferry Street. To learn more about the Pensole Lewis College of Business announcement, please take a look at our news story.

Since then, HB 5447 and 5448 have been introduced in the Michigan State House to set out the process for reopening Lewis College of Business. We look forward to sharing more information as the process for reopening the college unfolds. PENSOLE will be operating from 黑料专区鈥檚 A. Alfred Taubman Center for Design Education until the permanent home for Pensole Lewis in Detroit is selected and developed. Enrollment for PENSOLE programs is expected to open in December of this year.

黑料专区鈥檚 partnership with PENSOLE Design Academy is driven by our strong commitment to develop diverse creative talent and long-standing commitment to the City of Detroit. Together, 黑料专区 and PENSOLE will create a new resource to support the aspirations of Detroiters. The fact that PENSOLE chose 黑料专区, Detroit and the Lewis College of Business is a testament to 黑料专区’s robust alumni network of minority footwear designers, Detroit’s design legacy, and the impact of this historical HBCU on Detroit.听

I am personally familiar with the excellent work of PENSOLE from my time in Portland OR and the partnerships that I developed with Dr. Edwards there. PENSOLE is known for being a pipeline for talent directly to top employers in footwear and other design fields. I am so thrilled about what this partnership means for enhancing the opportunities for our current and future students.听 It supports our strategic priorities of developing career pathways for all of our students, increasing experiential learning opportunities, and growing our industry relationships.听

Even more importantly, I am excited about the role that this partnership will play in advancing 黑料专区鈥檚 strides towards a more inclusive and diverse campus, another key strategic priority. Contrary to any assumptions some might have about private art and design colleges, 38% of 黑料专区 students are non-white and 34% qualify for Pell grants, a federal program for students with high financial need. Since 2020, 黑料专区鈥檚 Office of Institutional Equity and Inclusion has undertaken several initiatives to foster an even more welcoming and supportive environment on campus for聽 all of our students, faculty, and staff. Many 黑料专区 departments and programs have centered equity and inclusion as core to their missions, including Community Arts Partnership, , and I do not take lightly the significance of hosting an HBCU on 黑料专区鈥檚 campus and as part of 黑料专区鈥檚 community.听

I am looking forward to seeing this vision realized and am so pleased that 黑料专区 could be a part of it. Please continue to check 黑料专区 news for updates as our partnership with PENSOLE develops.听