DETROIT- What can Detroit learn from St. Louis -- and what can St. Louis learn from Detroit? Community development professionals from both cities will meet in St. Louis to address these questions Oct. 12-15, 2014.
The Detroit Revitalization Fellows will meet with representatives from Preservation Research St. Louis, Washington University Medical Center Redevelopment Corporation, Old North St. Louis Restoration Group, Northside Regeneration, Cortex and others to discuss the successes and challenges faced by their organizations as they work to build more positive futures for their communities. It will be a unique opportunity for Detroit and St. Louis community and economic development leaders to learn from each other.
"Our fellows come from within Detroit and across the country for key positions at organizations driving positive change in the city and region," said Detroit Revitalization Fellows Program Director Graig Donnelly. "We look forward to comparing and contrasting our efforts in Detroit with our counterparts engaged in meaningful community and economic development work in St. Louis."
"Detroit and St. Louis share similar histories with population loss and disinvestment in the urban core, and both of our cities have opportunities to rebuild in incredibly creative ways," said Sean Thomas, executive director of the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group. "I'm excited to hear from the Detroit Fellows about the resilience, determination and innovation emerging from what others had given up on. And I'm looking forward to sharing our experiences pursuing a community-driven, neighborhood-wide revitalization strategy here in Old North St. Louis."
On Oct.15, the Detroit Revitalization Fellows will also share their work on critical community and economic development initiatives at the American Planning Association's 2014 Missouri Conference: Building Sustainable Communities. Work highlighted will include civic engagement strategies at Detroit Future City, innovations in metrics at The Greening of Detroit, impacts of the Eastern Market food hub, TechTown's SWOT City neighborhood entrepreneurial accelerator and environmental leadership in the HOPE Village Initiative -- a comprehensive community development effort encompassing a 100-block area around Oakman Boulevard.
The Detroit Revitalization Fellows Program (http://detroitfellows.wayne.edu/) prepares talented mid-career professionals to lead Detroit into a more collaborative and prosperous shared future. Fellows are employed full time at key organizations committed to revitalization efforts in the city. Fellows also participate in executive-style leadership education, professional coaching and mentoring, and "Detroit Dialogues" with business and community leaders. Together, these emerging leaders are building a network that more deeply connects the city's boardrooms and neighborhoods, while helping move essential community and economic development efforts forward.
Launched in 2011, the Detroit Revitalization Fellows Program has been made possible through the support of the Kresge Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Hudson-Webber Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Skillman Foundation, the DTE Energy Foundation, the Max M. & Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation, the PricewaterhouseCoopers Charitable Foundation, Rock Ventures, and Wayne State University. Recruiting for its 2015-17 cohort will begin this fall.
Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering more than 370 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 28,000 students.