The purpose of this Co-Learning Plan was to examine the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) skills or “digital literacy” skills gap and its relationship to workforce and economic development in Michigan.

Interviews of Michigan Inventors revealed several processes inventors might engage in to take their idea to market. This Co-Learning Plan highlighted the lack of support for those inventors not associated with a college or university and expanded on recommendations for how to assist them.

Delivering advanced manufacturing tools as public resources for communities and utilizing them in formal and informal STEM education opportunities will promote economic growth through learning applicable skills.

After an exploration of the meaning of innovation in the context of economic development and a summary of best practices, Arts Councils in Michigan are looked at as potential facilitators of increased innovation and creative thinking. Information collected through surveys, cataloging, and mapping was used for identifying the appropriate strategies…[Read more]

The Pay it Forward Initiative connected people to opportunities in our shared communities. PIFI addresses a wide array of life challenges and helps clients overcome these hurdles. Founder Charlie Cavell shares client stories of achievement, disappointment, lessons learned and raises questions.

Michigan’s public postsecondary institutions have long benefited from their constitutional autonomy. But, do the new digital conditions of higher education offer opportunities for innovative forms of collaboration, particularly those promoting degree attainment, and thus work force and economic development? This Co-Learning Plan will explore the…[Read more]

This co-learning plan will introduce new knowledge in the area of “Internship Programs in Distressed Communities”. The plan will examine the best practices for creating internship programs that work with community development organizations located in urban regions through Michigan. Relating back to Saginaw Valley State University, this plan wil…[Read more]

Microenterprise development supported entrepreneurs and businesses that contribute to vibrant neighborhoods, strong communities, and stable local economies. This Co-Learning Plan showcased research assessing Michigan’s microenterprise ecosystem and the avenues for entrepreneurs to connect to assistance. It featured the launch of a new online…[Read more]

This Co-Learning Plan brought the Mondragon model into the realm of higher education by educating students in the value of building a cooperative approach to community entrepreneurship. The process began with developing several cooperative educational modules to guide young people and interested adults from cooperative culture and social…[Read more]

This Co-Learning Plan presented and analyzed the efforts of the Community-Based Economy Group (CBE Group) in Detroit to adapt proven models of community-based business and social practices to help locally-rooted businesses accelerate transformation of Metro Detroit to a sustainable and inclusive local economy.

Connect Michigan has been leading the way to bring the economic and quality of life benefits of broadband to all Michigan residents. This report explored the opportunity for hands-on, on-site technology training for Michigan small businesses and suggests a model for local implementation.

This guide will help readers understand the multifaceted nature of the relationship between the economic development community and the community college, using the example of the development of a Creative Services Business Incubator. While this example is a micro look at one specific project the lessons have merit on a broader scale. The Creative…[Read more]

This Co-Learning Plan examined development trends in Detroit. Since Midtown Detroit has shown signs of resilience in the face of Detroit’s recent economic shortcomings, it was the focus area of this report. The report went through recent and past development in Midtown, a brief introduction to the developers, and where the main points of…[Read more]