DCBRP 2015

When I looked back at my first blog post I was actually really surprised at how close my expectations were at the beginning of my internship to the reality that played out over the last 10 weeks.  My first post was very optimistic, I was hoping that I would learn a lot and get to […]

Letter to my Former Self — Cole, Coming in to this program, I wanted to substantially impact a community this summer. That desire to impact change in the city of Detroit has not gone away — rather it has flourished. However, I have come to realize that one 20 year old who comes to the city

Well Audrey, the ten weeks are up. It’s been an adventure, one you’ll never forget. I remember the way you viewed Detroit back when you were applying for DCBRP, how you had the perception of a hip, new, revived Detroit that they want you to see. I remember when your knowledge of the city was limited

Well here it is… the end of my time in Detroit. I believe that this has been a summer of growth. I learned so much and gained so much respect for the city of Detroit. In my first blog post I realized that I did not know much about Detroit. In my own words,”Motown, cars,

I cannot believe that my time in Detroit has come to an end. Looking back on my first week in the city, I have came a long way from not knowing how to find the residential towers at WSU, to jumping on the highway in a split second to travel to Dearborn to shop, or

When I read my first week’s Blog, a few thoughts go through my head. First is the obvious fact that the summer did not at all go as I envisioned it going. The second is that the circumstances that made things go so very different were, by and large unavoidable. The third is that, while

The letter a wrote to myself at the beginning of the program is a pretty good indication about how I feel now about DCBRP and my placement. I had such amazing experiences in this program. Not only did I grow as a person, I was able to expand my professional universe to include a lot

A lot was on my shoulders when I started work. It’s just there wasn’t enough time! The people I had to get in contact with were always busy so it took them some weeks to respond. I think I did persevere despite this. I got in contact with as many people as I could and

There were two big reasons I wanted to work in Detroit this summer. First, I was attracted to the pride that people had in Detroit.  There is so much history in Detroit that makes each neighborhood unique.  I don’t consider myself to have a hometown.  I say I am from Iowa, but I only lived

So this week, I have started preparing for the end of the program seminar where we will all present our projects to family, friends, and coworkers. Naim and I have decided to write a slam poem together and preform it for the seminar. When first coming up with this plan, I hadn’t realized the kind