{"id":11718,"date":"2022-09-27T14:19:34","date_gmt":"2022-09-27T18:19:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/?p=11718"},"modified":"2022-09-30T07:49:12","modified_gmt":"2022-09-30T11:49:12","slug":"dcdc-takes-small-steps-creates-big-impact-for-detroit-youth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/2022\/09\/27\/dcdc-takes-small-steps-creates-big-impact-for-detroit-youth\/","title":{"rendered":"DCDC takes small steps, creates big impact for Detroit youth"},"content":{"rendered":"

Small changes can lead to large results, and that\u2019s precisely the framework t<\/span>he Detroit Collaborative Design Center<\/a> (DCDC) is using to build positive change within the world of architecture and local communities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thanks to a grant received from The Kresge Foundation and partnerships with Grow Detroit\u2019s Young Talent and Urban Neighborhood Initiatives, <\/span>the Detroit Mercy School of Architecture & Community Development\u2019s nonprofit community design organization, DCDC, <\/span>was able to continue to give back, this time through a six-week h<\/span>igh school summer internship program<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis program is part of a bigger commitment to contribute to diversifying our profession,\u201d said <\/span>Ceara O\u2019Leary, DCDC co-executive director. \u201cWe think it\u2019s important for more students and Detroiters to get exposure to all the different design fields early on.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The summer curriculum consisted of weekly lessons based on modules ranging from community design and engagement to business development and portfolio creation with each week building on previous week\u2019s work and lessons. It also served as the first job for this year\u2019s two selectees.<\/span> \"Detroit<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always wanted to be an architect, ever since I was a little kid,\u201d said Alan Maciel, a junior at Cass Tech High School in Detroit. \u201cGrowing up, I\u2019d play with Legos, build and draw. Building a house for my parents has always been a goal of mine, but ultimately,<\/span> I would love to help out my community. I eventually want to share my success and bring back the knowledge and skills I have to better my neighborhood. I can\u2019t leave them behind.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While working alongside a mix of professionals, undergraduate and graduate students within the school, the student interns learned graphic and 3D design programs and worked toward long-term project goals while engaging in site visits that supported their weekly assignments.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBecause we are working with such a small group, we were able to connect with the student interns in a way that allowed them to see, engage, and learn about our project\u2019s day-to-day workflow,\u201d said Stephanie Onwenu, DCDC public interest design fellow.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The program was created as a way to address a glaring demographics gap within the career as well as<\/span> to create opportunities that weren\u2019t available before. For DCDC Senior Architect and Project Director, Joshua Budiongan \u201912, it\u2019s an issue he\u2019s faced first-hand.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>It seemed that when I got further and further into my own education and career journey that it became less and less diverse, and I want to change that,\u201d said Budiongan. \u201cIf we aren\u2019t raising awareness about these design inequities, then it won\u2019t change \u2014 a lack of representation in the field culminates in lack of representation in the built environment.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The high school summer internship program is just one of many different initiatives spearheaded s<\/span>ince the organization’s conception in 1994. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe majority of the work we do is centered around grassroots activism and advocacy,\u201d Budiongan said. \u201cWith that being a focus, it\u2019s easy to see that the next step would be to get the youth of Detroit involved through education and provide training and pathways into the profession where they didn\u2019t exist in the past.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Although only in its first year, the DCDC is calling it a success and plans to\u00a0bring back the program each summer.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>There are lots of opportunities within design,\u201d said O\u2019Leary. \u201cIf we can bridge those gaps and help students find their path, even just with a few students at a time, we know we can move the needle of this career in the right direction.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thanks to a grant received from The Kresge Foundation and partnerships with Grow Detroit\u2019s Young Talent and Urban Neighborhood Initiatives, the Detroit Mercy School of Architecture & Community Development\u2019s nonprofit community design organization, Detroit Collaborative Design Center, was able to continue to give back, this time through a six-week high school summer internship program.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":233,"featured_media":11740,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[6],"tags":[91,22,1392,4957,4920,1065,4915],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/106\/2022\/09\/full_dcdc_interns.jpg?fit=1900%2C713&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbwnTV-330","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11718"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/233"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11718"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11718\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11741,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11718\/revisions\/11741"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11740"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/campusconnection\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}