The mission of CommunityEngagement@Wayne is to steward activities that affect not only what is taught, but also how and where it is taught. We strive to accomplish this by enhancing students’ academic training with opportunities to provide service to the community that enriches their knowledge and understanding of society.

To achieve our goal of enriching the Wayne State experience, we seek the support of donors who understand and embrace the importance of community engagement to the overall wellbeing of our shared world.

Donors make it possible for us to meet our central responsibility, which is to facilitate relationships among community-based organizations, faculty and students that:

• foster collaborations that address an issue, problem or need identified by community partners;
• produce results directly relevant to both the community partner and the students; and
• encourage ongoing student participation in community-based work, helping to maintain consistent and mutually beneficial relationships between the agencies and the university.

The Department of Anthropology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences partnered with the Corktown Development Corporation to offer an exciting learning opportunity to students during the spring 2008 term. Students experienced life as an archeologist and historian of Detroit’s famous Corktown neighborhood by working on-site at the Corktown Workers Row House and in the archaeology lab in Old Main. Students practiced archaeological techniques such as mapping and profiling soils, digging, screening, photography, and artifact conservation. Students earned credit for the course, while leaving a mark on Detroit’s history through the development of a landmark museum in Corktown.

The Revolutionary Detroit Project linked Wayne State University students with the Detroit Historical Museum and other community partners to uncover the history of Detroit during the American revolutionary era. Students explored the impact of Pontiac’s War in Detroit in the early 1760s and conducted research on Revolutionary Detroit. In April 2009, Professor Denver Brunsman’s history students organized a public symposium on Revolutionary Detroit and this fall the Detroit Historical Society will publish a book featuring student papers from the symposium.

Please consider making a donation to CommunityEngagement@Wayne. Your gift can be designated to support the program in general, or directed to one of our community programs. Wherever you make your gift and whatever the size, you will become a partner in strengthening the quality of life in metropolitan Detroit.

If you wish to make a gift online, please visit https://giving.wayne.edu/donate.