Announcing the 2025 Skillman Visionary Awards
The Skillman Foundation

The Skillman Foundation

Category Archives: Blog

Poverty Solutions finds Undercount of Homeless Kids in Detroit, Across Michigan

by: Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan | Dec. 3rd, 2019 New referral system between Detroit shelters, schools aims to better serve homeless students This story was originally written by Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan. To read the original post, click here. DETROIT — It’s below freezing outside on a gray November […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Afterschool Program Database for Metro Detroit Youth Launches

by: The Skillman Foundation | Nov. 13th, 2019 A new online resource for youth and families is designed to help find meaningful afterschool programs to support the growth and development of Metro Detroit youth. Discover Your Spark, launched by the Youth Development Resource Center (YDRC), is a comprehensive database of aftershool programming in Wayne, Oakland, […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Too Many Kids, Not Enough Space

by: Elicenda Garza | Nov. 13th, 2019 This post originally appeared on Our Kids Detroit Students’ Blog, supported by The Skillman Foundation. Read the original post here. Last year, my youth group, 482Youth, surveyed students and teachers from Detroit. We wanted to know the biggest issue they thought they faced in their schools.The number one answer, out of […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Our Kids Essay Contest

by: The Skillman Foundation | Nov. 7th, 2019 A local essay contest will give youth the opportunity to share their ideas and perspectives around their schools and the issues that impact their lives. The Our Kids Essay Contest is accepting entries from high school and first-year college students until Saturday, November 16. Students are encouraged […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Why Funding Matters

by: Wallyaldeen Alhomaidi | Nov. 7th, 2019 This post originally appeared on Our Kids Detroit Students’ Blog. Read the original post here. Check out the first vlog by Wally Aldeen Alhomaidi from the 482Youth group of 482Forward, “Why Funding Matters” about school funding. 482Forward is a citywide education organizing network in Detroit. “We are neighborhood organizations, parents, and youth committed to ensuring […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Successful Despite…

by: Imani Harris | Oct. 30th, 2019 This post originally appeared on Our Kids Detroit Students’ Blog, supported by The Skillman Foundation. Read the original post here. My first year of college was…a rough ride. I had just graduated from my city’s number one school, and all of a sudden I was attending a top ten university. My […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

NBC News Learn Presents: Education Now Detroit

by: The Skillman Foundation | Oct. 29th, 2019 On October 24, 2019, NBC News hosted a series of panel discussions with stakeholders in the realm of Detroit education. Dubbed Education Now: Detroit, the event brought together educators, community leaders, and others to discuss addressing student trauma, chronic absence, teacher preparation, and student opportunity. The Skillman […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Cody Rouge Initiative Invests $1.4M to Expand City Year Support for Neighborhood Students

by: The Skillman Foundation | Oct. 29th, 2019 DETROIT – The Cody Rouge Initiative (the Initiative), a public-private collaboration to support a resident-led vision to ensure Detroit’s Cody Rouge neighborhood is a great place to raise children, announced it is providing $1.4 million in funding over two years to City Year Detroit, an education-focused nonprofit […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

The American Education System Must Be Equal Before It Can Be the Best

by: Christal Phillips | Oct. 28th, 2019 I have spent my life and career thinking about the inequality of social structures that prevent most of the world’s population from ever escaping poverty. My work in the study of poverty alleviation took me to Ethiopia, Tanzania, China, and Thailand. But Americans need not go far to […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Lights on Aftershool

by: Terry Whitfield | Oct. 21st, 2019 There is a generational understanding of the power of the streetlight, one that is rooted in our collective consciousness; one that strongly resonates in my memories of growing up in Detroit. For most kids, the streetlight served as the universal signal to get home. I would find myself […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Wayne Kids Win! announces petition drive for after school proposal

by: The Skillman Foundation | Oct. 17th, 2019 Yesterday, on October 16th, Wayne Kids Win! announced a petition drive to collect signatures from registered voters in Wayne County, aiming to collect enough signatures to place a millage proposal on the March 10, 2020 ballot in support of afterschool programming for Wayne County children. Who is […]

Read more »
Posted by: NFotias

School Lunches

by: Elicenda Garza | Oct. 9th, 2019 This post originally appeared on Our Kids Detroit Students’ Blog. Read the original post here. I’m sure everyone has heard “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day” at least once in their lifetime. Whether they agree, or not, is a different matter, but I think we can all agree on […]

Read more »
Posted by: NFotias

2019 Skillman BMe Vanguard Fellows

by: Kumar Raj | Oct. 1st, 2019 Detroit residents—and their voices—are strong. Detroiters have played an instrumental role in shaping culture in their city, country, and world. But too often, their voices are missing from the forefront of shaping the policies, practices, and systems that impact their lives and communities. To help deepen the bench […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

School Attendance Must Be a Priority after Count Day

by: | Oct. 1st, 2019 This op-ed originally appeared in The Detroit Free Press. Click here to read the original post. Kids in Detroit missed almost 2.3 million days of school last year. That’s 2.3 million missed days of learning — 2.3 million missed opportunities to build essential skills,  2.3 million days of partially filled classrooms, 2.3 million days […]

Read more »
Posted by: NFotias

Taking Charge of Our Education

by: Elicenda Garza | Sep. 25th, 2019 This post originally appeared on Our Kids Detroit Students’ Blog. Read the original post here. Recently, I’ve started to realize how different my community is from other people’s. Have you ever noticed how poor communities of color are portrayed in movies and shows? It is always much worse […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

Detroit Area Foundations & Businesses Announce $1 Million Fund to Recognize Detroit Youth Choir

by: The Skillman Foundation | Sep. 20th, 2019 Detroit, MI – Today, a group of Detroit-based foundations and members of the business community announced a $1 million endowment to recognize the Detroit Youth Choir, following their tremendous accomplishment on NBC’s America’s Got Talent. “We are incredibly proud of what the Detroit Youth Choir achieved during […]

Read more »
Posted by: Alexa Borromeo

The Skillman Foundation’s Natalie Fotias to Participate in Detroit Regional Chamber’s Leadership Detroit Class XLI

by: The Skillman Foundation | Sep. 18th, 2019 DETROIT – Natalie Fotias of The Skillman Foundation has been selected to participate in the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Leadership Detroit program, a 10-month transformational leadership program designed to challenge emerging and existing community leaders from Southeast Michigan to bring about positive change. “Surrounding myself with others who […]

Read more »
Posted by: NFotias

Terry Takes on Racquet Up Detroit

by: The Skillman Foundation | Sep. 10th, 2019 The Skillman Foundation’s Terry Whitfield took a trip to Racquet Up Detroit to learn about the work they do with the city’s youth and to challenge some of their players to a game. Watch the epic battle below!

Read more »
Posted by: NFotias