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LEAP Lab in Detroit

Published by Aubrey Hicks on

by Donnajean Ward

Last month, from May 17-23, 2015, I was a member of a team taking a group of 15 undergraduates from USC Price to the City of Detroit as part of academic lab focused on social, environmental, and urban issues.  The program , Learning to Excel Academically and Professionally (LEAP/PPD431) is designed to provide “immersive, experiential, real-world training to Price students ”by visiting and working in the places they study.”  Leading the capstone laboratory was adjunct professor, John Loper and associate professor, Liz Falletta.  Between the three of us we managed to cover most of Detroit’s 138 square miles, its diversity of challenges, and endless surprises.  Over the next couple of week or so, I plan to write about the projects that our students took on for their clients (Presbyterian Villages of Michigan and Michigan Community Resources) and I hope to convey the energy and grit of the city and our students.

Bedrosian Center