Detroit HBCU Pathways Project
Built by Woods & Watts Effect
Informed by Closing the Gap Detroit and College, Career & Beyond | Midnight Golf Program
Mission:
In 2023, The Kresge Foundation challenged us to find out how to move more Detroit students toward HBCU degree completion and then have them launch their careers home in Michigan. Our mission was to learn from, share information with and build alignment among stakeholders, which reveal best practices to support Detroit students’ access to and through college completion at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and ultimately their return to Michigan for employment and impact.
Objectives:
Document the existing resources, services and stakeholders that form the network and pathways for students to access and succeed at HBCUs
Identify opportunities that further support the network and pathways for students to access and succeed in college
Create a comprehensive framework that reflects best practices and strategic recommendations for the Detroit students-to-HBCU access and success ecosystem
Foster an environment of collaboration among individuals and organizations that best serves students
Provide data-informed, practical guidance for student pathways to HBCUs
Develop framework that can be applied in other communities
Target Students:
Detroit students in attending public, private and charter high schools
Approach:
Woods & Watts Effect, with Closing the Gap Detroit and Midnight Golf Program providing subject matter expertise, lead an inclusive, investigative process to document and ideate the factors for the target students’ educational success. Starting in December 2023, we engaged various stakeholders: students, alumni, parents, coaches, administrators, colleges and universities, and the corporate community and others that play a role in the steps to access higher education, complete a degree, and become gainfully employed in Michigan. Activities completed:
Focus groups with current Detroit HBCU students
Digital survey completed by Detroit HBCU students.
Focus groups composed of Detroit and suburban high school counselors
Focus groups parents, local HBCU alumni, local college access program administrators, and HBCU football coaches.
One-on-one interviews with metro Detroit employers, local graduate programs, and HBCU leadership.
We look forward to sharing what we learned, recommendations for moving forward, and describing a rich ecosystem to help Detroit students “to and through” college and return. In America’s ever-changing higher education landscape, Detroit students need HBCUs and HBCUs need Detroit students. Our goal: to get them to the yard, graduate and then back home again.
Want to learn more or share information with us?
equity@woodswattseffect.com
An initiative funded by The Kresge Foundation.
