The Community Leadership Fellows Program is a two - year project funded by the U.S. Department of Justice to reduce and prevent violence among and against young people.
EMU faculty and community representatives work in teams of two to create interventions targeting a wide range of risk and protective factors. The primary targets of the project are Ypsilanti, the Arab-American community of southeastern Michigan, and the Hispanic community of southwestern Detroit.
The first of two cohorts of Fellows is currently underway and will continue until December, 2004. Four faculty (Faculty Fellows) have been matched with an equal number of employees of community organizations (Community Fellows). They have worked a minimum of 20 hours a week each during the past four months to identify the strengths of the designeated community agencies as well as areas that can be enhanced to serve the target populations better. The focus now is on developing sustainable interventions to prevent and reduce violence.
The Director of the program is :
- Jeffrey Schulz - Director of Health Education Community Fellowship Program.
- Laura Vela-Wolan, Latino Family Services (Detroit), and Harrison Smith, Professor of Social Work - focus on strengthening after-school programs and reducing drug and alcohol abuse.
- Elisha Wolfe, SOS Community Services (Ypsilanti), and Andreas Tomaszewski, Assistant Professor of Crimnology - focus on recreation opportunities for homeless youth.
- Joanna Ladki, Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (Dearborn), and John Palladino, Assistant Professor of Special Education - focus on preventing and reducing domestic violence.
- Alexis Zavala - Detroit Hispanic Development of Political Science - focus on reducing participation in gangs.
The next cohort will work from January to December 2005. Recruiting for the second cohort is underway.
The Fellows Program is one segment of the EMU Center for Community Building and Civic Engagement (CCBCE), headed by Dr.Elvia Krajewski-Jaime. The CCBCE recently received a $1 Million from the Department of Justice to support various community outreach activities as well as the Fellows Program for two years.
Go to Second of Communtiy and Faculty Fellows(DOJ)
Go to Center for Community Building and Civic Engagement (CCBCE)
