On June 23rd, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led more than 100,000 people in a march down Woodward Avenue. Later in the day, he gave the first version of his "I Have A Dream" speech. The 50th anniversary of that speech takes place this weekend. Kelly Young is an associate professor of communication at Wayne State University. He spoke with WDET's Jerome Vaughn. Young says King's speech in Detroit is very close to the remarks delivered during the March on Washington in August 1963.

Even with its flaws, higher education is good for America and good for the world, according to Allan Gilmour, president of Wayne State University. "Interestingly, it is good for business," Gilmour told the Detroit Economic Club on Tuesday. "For a long time, the connection between businesses and universities was tenuous at best ... But today, more than ever, the ivory towers have opened their doors for business." Gilmour spoke before scores of business leaders and higher education officials in what likely will be one of his last public appearances before retiring for good. Gilmour said it is the university's role to provide students with the best possible education. That, in turn, helps businesses because well-educated students become a pool of talent that will spark innovation. "That is how we renew companies and industries," Gilmour said. "And that is how we create productive citizens ... Our graduates become your employees, your colleagues, perhaps your successors, ultimately."

Wayne State University is planning on investing in the middle schoolers at Burton International Academy in Detroit by "adopting" the middle school wing at Burton. It looks like this particular adoption will entail mentoring from the admissions office at Wayne State, lots of college and career information for parents and students, field trips, classrooms visits and access to academics for the middle schoolers. Burton is a K-8 school with plenty of challenges. Concerns about performance got it on the list of state Priority Schools this year. But according to some traditional indicators the school had some important things going for it prior to this partnership with Wayne State. Burton consistently outperforms the rest of the district on standardized tests. Students who speak English as a second language at Burton have average test scores leaps and bounds above similarly situated kids across the state.

Longtime Wayne State University professor Joan Dunbar joined the University's Division of Research as interim associate vice president of technology commercialization last year. In May, Hilary Ratner, vice president for research, removed the interim tag following a competitive national search in which "she emerged as the transformational leader the University sought," a news release stated. Bloomfield-Bloomfield Patch editor Art Aisner conducted a Q&A with Dunbar.

Wayne State University President Allan Gilmour will be the keynote speaker at today's Detroit Economic Club event, 11:05 a.m.-2:40 p.m., at Community Arts Auditorium. A description of President Gilmour's talk is included at the Detroit Economic Club website, as follows: "We used to view our higher education system as one of our greatest assets, and a global advantage. This reputation declined amid a flatter world, a difficult economy, and an increasing demand for accountability. Yes, higher education must evolve, but let's not lose sight of the many benefits of higher education, among which is the positive economic impact of universities - particularly research universities. If universities were businesses, we would beg them to locate in our state."

WDET's Pat Batcheller talked with Saeed Khan about Iran's new president. "If there's going to be a relationship that develops with (Hasan) Rowhani, the American and Iranian public probably will not see it for several years out in the open," says Khan. Iran's newly-elected president is reaching out to the United States, saying both countries should look to the future. But Rowhani also repeated that one-on-one talks are only possible if the U.S. never interferes in Iranian affairs. What kind of leader will Rowhani be? Khan says Rowhani's style may resemble that of a previous Iranian leader, Mohammad Khatami.

Using joy to jumpstart urban revitalization is the focus of a forum this week at Wayne State University. The university is hosting a series of events Monday and Tuesday dubbed "Joy: in the Midst of Transition." It includes a public lecture and panel discussion with urban planning, creative and design experts. The lecture and discussion are scheduled for Tuesday evening at Wayne State's Community Arts Auditorium. They are free and open to the public. The events are presented by the university's Van Dusen Urban Leadership Forum. It's named after Richard Van Dusen, the late Detroit lawyer who also served as a university board member, Republican state lawmaker and undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

A new research and education alliance, Huron to Erie Alliance for Research and Training - Freshwater Center (HEART), was announced on June 7 by officials from Macomb County, Macomb Community College and Wayne State University. The HEART Freshwater Center will be based at Lake St. Clair Metropark and will feature a permanent classroom and a mobile laboratory. "Wayne State University has won a $25,000 planning grant from the National Science Foundation to conduct strategic planning for the water research center" and to map out a fund raising course, said Hilary Ratner, vice president for research at Wayne State University. One of the goals of the center is to attract scientists, policymakers and researchers to study the unique urban watershed of the corridor.

Shawn McElmurry, Wayne State assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, was a guest on Fox 2's Health Works to discuss ways families can minimize children's exposure to outdoor lead. In a recent study, McElmurry revealed children's blood lead levels spike during summer months because they are exposed more to contaminated soil through direct contact (playing outside) and airborne lead contaminated soil.

A segment of the Making a Difference Report highlights the Kalamazoo Promise program through which anonymous donors to pay tuition at any of Michigan's state colleges or universities for graduates of the public high schools of Kalamazoo. Student Zach Julian noted that he will study engineering at Wayne State University in the fall.

The annual Jazzin' on Jefferson celebration, now in its 10th year, will be held June 14 and 15 along Jefferson Avenue. On June 15, the Wayne State University Maggie Allesee Department of Theatre and Dance will present an anti-bullying-theme play Cinderella, or It's Okay to Be Different" at 2 and 4 p.m.

Craig Fahle and guests Irvin D. Reid and Sheila Cockrel from the Forum on Contemporary Issues in Society (FOCIS) discuss how the initiative is using the university's problem-solving resources. This month FOCIS is holding public events aimed at asking ordinary citizens how they might solve the problems in Detroit. The second one in the series takes place the evening of June 13. Participants will assume the roles of city officials who must navigate the complex landscape of Detroit politics.

On Tuesday, June 11, Campus Martius Park was the host site for the 2013 Detroit Sports Commission (DSC) Mascot Challenge. Many of metro Detroit's sports mascots participated in a series of competitions that pitted the professional mascots against the college mascots. The college mascots were led by "W" of Wayne State University, University of Detroit Mercy's "Tommy Titan," Oakland University's "Clawz," and "Swoop" from Eastern Michigan University.

Ryan Kelley, Wayne State University head baseball coach, spoke with Craig Fahle about the renovations of WSU's current baseball diamond. The new proposed stadium will be named Harwell Field to honor the late Detroit Tiger's play-by-play announcer Ernie Harwell. The University announced the renovations on June 6 during a ceremony attended by Lulu Harwell, wife of the Tigers announcer who passed away in 2010. The stadium will mirror the facade of Ebbets Field, where Harwell once worked as a broadcaster for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Wayne State University's Forum on Contemporary Issues in Society (FOCIS) will hold a community discussion and workshop on June 13 at the International Institute of Metropolitan Detroit. Kirby. The free event, titled "What would you do?," continues the successful FOCIS series, which is designed to educate high-performance (active and registered) voters about historical factors and events that contributed to Detroit's economic crisis. During this year's tabletop exercise, participants will act in the roles of mayor and city council as they deal with the presence of an emergency manager navigating the complex landscape facing city leaders and elected officials. The event will run from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. and is expected to draw approximately 100 attendees from various backgrounds. They are being coordinated by FOCIS and its CitizenDetroit initiative, the Irvin D. Reid Honors College and the Eugene Applebaum Chair in Community Engagement. Reid and former Detroit City Councilwoman Sheila Cockrel are the event hosts. Reid, president-emeritus of Wayne State, is inaugural holder of the Applebaum Chair, director of FOCIS and a principal organizer of CitizenDetroit. Cockrel is a CitizenDetroit co-organizer, WSU Honors College faculty member, and the budget committee chair.

Wayne State University, in conjunction with the Ernie Harwell Estate and the Ernie Harwell Foundation, announced plans Thursday to establish the Harwell Field project. The project includes plans to build a press box, grandstands and team clubhouse, plus a foyer that will recognize the achievements and contributions of Ernie Harwell and his wife, Lulu. The stadium will mirror the façade of Ebbets Field, where Harwell once worked as a broadcaster for the Brooklyn Dodgers. "It is exciting to finally unveil this project and have Mrs. Harwell here for this announcement," athletic director Rob Fournier said Thursday in the statement. "To now get us to this stage is one more giant step in realizing our dream of a stadium in Detroit named for the Harwells that celebrates their legacy, their contribution to Michigan and is a tribute to a marriage that truly embodied the best that we can all applaud," Fournier said. Warriors baseball coach Ryan Kelley sees the association with the Harwells as a boost for Wayne State players past and future. "From an immediate standpoint, it will help us be competitive from a recruiting standpoint, as a very attractive institution," Kelley said. "Our baseball program is over 70 years old. We've had over a thousand letterwinners. I'm sure a lot of them will want to come back frequently to the ballpark and be associated with the name of Harwell."

Wayne State University President Allan Gilmour will be speaking at a Detroit Economic Club luncheon to be held on the Wayne State campus at 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 18. The topic of his speech is how higher education is good for the business world. President Gilmour, who serves on the board of Downtown Detroit Partnership, will talk about how America's higher education system must evolve in a tight economy. He'll also cover how universities, especially research universities, can contribute to the strength of the nation's businesses.

Jeff Mason, executive director of the University Research Corridor, wrote a letter to Crain's referencing the June 3 article ("State pushes Wayne State to up its game on tech transfer"). "When one considers the excellent work being done at Wayne State University in areas stretching from perinatology research to biomedical innovation and automotive engineering, it's clear that Wayne State is a full partner in the University Research Corridor," Mason wrote. "Wayne State clearly is pulling its weight in fulfilling that mission. Earlier this year, the National Institutes of Health awarded Wayne State a 10-year, $166 million contract to host and support the perinatology research branch of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health. The university also brings in millions of dollars for research in automotive engineering, nanosciences, children's health, alternative energy and computer science, among others. It also is educating its share of students who graduate and become entrepreneurs, as a recent URC survey showed. The URC counts on Wayne State as a vital partner to Michigan State and the University of Michigan. It's a role no other university in the state could play as well." (subscriber access only)

WSU students, led by Gino Etta, who founded one of the first university chapters in the nation, are building a wheel chair ramp for 33-year-old Franklin Williams of Detroit. Partnering with Rebuilding Together Detroit and the MS Society, the student chapter has raised about $5,000 and are hoping to complete the ramp this month. "I was really looking for a way to directly impact lives," said Etta. "A lot of people are unaware that there's citizens living right now without heat, with leaks in their roofs." The front steps on Williams' home will be replaced with a ramp to allow him more freedom.

That nearly one out of every five graduates from Michigan's top three research universities has started at least one business proves the need for continued support for entrepreneurism by higher education. So says a survey from the University Research Corridor, an alliance of Michigan State University, the University of Michigan and Wayne State University. The data also indicate that in the last decade, alumni of URC schools are delving into entrepreneurship at an earlier age. That finding could reflect a higher emphasis that member institutions have placed on supporting entrepreneurship, as have most of Michigan's other public universities in recent years. "There is just an awakening not only on the campuses but in the state about the notion of not just going to work for someone but creating your own company and having people work for you," URC Executive Director Jeff Mason said. "It bodes well for Michigan's future and our economic prosperity."