The challenge of all things: A Q&A with Ypsilanti mayor Amanda Edmonds
Six months ago, Amanda Edmonds was elected Ypsilanti's mayor with 97% of the vote! Concentrate checks in with her on how things are going so far, and what she's got planned next.
Education
Latest in Education
Backyard Brains looks to double revenue with national marketing
Backyard Brains has been chugging along for years, making a nice little business out of neuroscience testing kits with cockroaches. After five years it has hit $500,000 in revenue, but has its sights set on a much bigger number. "We want that to increase to $1 million," says Tim Marzullo, co-founder & chief science officer of Backyard Brains. The Ann Arbor-based company is getting ready to embark on a national marketing campaign to close that gap. Marzullo likes to say that when he or members of his sales team show off the company's insect neuroscience kits for grade-school education products, like the RoboRoach, they become instantly popular with teachers and students to the point orders are placed on the spot. "It shocks us when we go to a neuroscience conference and people haven't heard of us," Marzullo says. Which is a bit surprising because Backyard Brains is an international firm with a growing office in Chile. It has made five hires over the last year and now employs a team of about a dozen people. Marzullo hopes that team will be able to really make a name for itself this year. "We want to expand beyond word of mouth," Marzullo says. "We're selling every day but not the numbers we need to be selling." Source: Tim Marzullo, co-founder & chief science officer of Backyard Brains Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
U-M struggles to achieve economic diversity
Given all the accolades and advantages U-M as as the fourth-ranked public university in the United States, you'd think it'd do a better job of educating low income students. Excerpt: "U-M has one number it’s probably not proud of: the smallest share of low-income students among Michigan’s public universities, and one of the lowest rates among public universities in the country." Read the rest here.
Blogger digs into Ann Arbor’s 826Michigan
A former EMU creative writing student decided to start a locally focused blog. She describes it as: "Unpublished" is the journey of discovering Ann Arbor and everything it has to offer. It is exposing interiors; offering a deeper look at places I frequent. It is the gathering of recommendations from locals and my experiencing them for the first time. "Unpublished" is spreading Michigan roots in food, fashion, art, music, coffee and local business territories. Her latest slice of local goodness is the nonprofit 826Michigan. Onward robots! Excerpt: "Having a relationship with creative writing all of my life, and working with children for half of it, I am confident in saying that 826michigan is probably the coolest nonprofit organization. Ever." Read the rest here.
Full STEAM ahead for Ann Arbor’s Northside Elementary
After years of dwindling enrollment, Ann Arbor's Northside Elementary School fully embraced the concept of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) integrated learning. The result has been a dramatic upswing in student admissions and performance. So much so that the school is expanding to a K-8 curriculum in 2016.
Ann Arbor teacher given Stephen Sondheim award
Each year the Kennedy Center hands out Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Awards to teachers who make a difference in the lives of their students. This year 13 were awarded, 3 were awarded to Michigan teachers and 1 was Pioneer High School teacher Jim Robert. Excerpt: "Be the change you want to see in the world!" I entered the teaching profession to inspire my students accordingly. What I didn't anticipate was how being in the presence of adolescents would thoroughly change me. For 27 years they have been teaching me to listen and inside that listening I have learned to teach." Check out the list here.
3 up and coming arts nonprofits that deserve your support
In a community filled with long established arts and culture nonprofits (some over a century old), launching a new organization can be tough going. Concentrate shines the spotlight on three fledgling groups that could help seed the ground for the next generation of creators and audiences.
The urban donut has shifted
The old and busted narrative went thusly: Suburbs are safe, smart and affluent. Cities are scary, poor, and un-educated. What a difference 20 years make. Excerpt: Putting urban neighborhoods under a microscope, a University of Virginia researcher has concluded that the traditional urban "donut" pattern — a ring of thriving suburbs surrounding a decaying city center — is being replaced by a new pattern: a thriving urban core surrounded by a ring of suburbs with older housing, older residents and more poverty. Read the rest here.
Digital Inclusion: From classroom to pop-up
A program at EMU not only aims to teach low-income and at-risk area youth how to repair computers, but how to sell the fruits of their labors at a retail pop up. It's the best kind of entrepreneurial education, learning by both book and by practice.
New York Philharmonic partners with UMS for 5 year Ann Arbor residency
Concerts, classes and workshops are part of a five year Ann Arbor residency for one of the nation's premiere orchestras. Excerpt: "The University Musical Society announced today a five-year residency partnership that will bring the New York Philharmonic to Ann Arbor for three extended appearances between 2015 and 2020. The residencies, underwritten by a seven-figure donation to UMS, will include multiple concerts each year, master classes and workshops for students and a range of public activities designed to connect the orchestra with the community in southeastern Michigan." Read the rest here.
Backyard Brains looks to double revenue with national marketing
Backyard Brains has been chugging along for years, making a nice little business out of neuroscience testing kits with cockroaches. After five years it has hit $500,000 in revenue, but has its sights set on a much bigger number. "We want that to increase to $1 million," says Tim Marzullo, co-founder & chief science officer of Backyard Brains. The Ann Arbor-based company is getting ready to embark on a national marketing campaign to close that gap. Marzullo likes to say that when he or members of his sales team show off the company's insect neuroscience kits for grade-school education products, like the RoboRoach, they become instantly popular with teachers and students to the point orders are placed on the spot. "It shocks us when we go to a neuroscience conference and people haven't heard of us," Marzullo says. Which is a bit surprising because Backyard Brains is an international firm with a growing office in Chile. It has made five hires over the last year and now employs a team of about a dozen people. Marzullo hopes that team will be able to really make a name for itself this year. "We want to expand beyond word of mouth," Marzullo says. "We're selling every day but not the numbers we need to be selling." Source: Tim Marzullo, co-founder & chief science officer of Backyard Brains Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
U-M struggles to achieve economic diversity
Given all the accolades and advantages U-M as as the fourth-ranked public university in the United States, you'd think it'd do a better job of educating low income students. Excerpt: "U-M has one number it’s probably not proud of: the smallest share of low-income students among Michigan’s public universities, and one of the lowest rates among public universities in the country." Read the rest here.
Blogger digs into Ann Arbor’s 826Michigan
A former EMU creative writing student decided to start a locally focused blog. She describes it as: "Unpublished" is the journey of discovering Ann Arbor and everything it has to offer. It is exposing interiors; offering a deeper look at places I frequent. It is the gathering of recommendations from locals and my experiencing them for the first time. "Unpublished" is spreading Michigan roots in food, fashion, art, music, coffee and local business territories. Her latest slice of local goodness is the nonprofit 826Michigan. Onward robots! Excerpt: "Having a relationship with creative writing all of my life, and working with children for half of it, I am confident in saying that 826michigan is probably the coolest nonprofit organization. Ever." Read the rest here.
Full STEAM ahead for Ann Arbor’s Northside Elementary
After years of dwindling enrollment, Ann Arbor's Northside Elementary School fully embraced the concept of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) integrated learning. The result has been a dramatic upswing in student admissions and performance. So much so that the school is expanding to a K-8 curriculum in 2016.
Ann Arbor teacher given Stephen Sondheim award
Each year the Kennedy Center hands out Stephen Sondheim Inspirational Teacher Awards to teachers who make a difference in the lives of their students. This year 13 were awarded, 3 were awarded to Michigan teachers and 1 was Pioneer High School teacher Jim Robert. Excerpt: "Be the change you want to see in the world!" I entered the teaching profession to inspire my students accordingly. What I didn't anticipate was how being in the presence of adolescents would thoroughly change me. For 27 years they have been teaching me to listen and inside that listening I have learned to teach." Check out the list here.
3 up and coming arts nonprofits that deserve your support
In a community filled with long established arts and culture nonprofits (some over a century old), launching a new organization can be tough going. Concentrate shines the spotlight on three fledgling groups that could help seed the ground for the next generation of creators and audiences.
The urban donut has shifted
The old and busted narrative went thusly: Suburbs are safe, smart and affluent. Cities are scary, poor, and un-educated. What a difference 20 years make. Excerpt: Putting urban neighborhoods under a microscope, a University of Virginia researcher has concluded that the traditional urban "donut" pattern — a ring of thriving suburbs surrounding a decaying city center — is being replaced by a new pattern: a thriving urban core surrounded by a ring of suburbs with older housing, older residents and more poverty. Read the rest here.
Digital Inclusion: From classroom to pop-up
A program at EMU not only aims to teach low-income and at-risk area youth how to repair computers, but how to sell the fruits of their labors at a retail pop up. It's the best kind of entrepreneurial education, learning by both book and by practice.
New York Philharmonic partners with UMS for 5 year Ann Arbor residency
Concerts, classes and workshops are part of a five year Ann Arbor residency for one of the nation's premiere orchestras. Excerpt: "The University Musical Society announced today a five-year residency partnership that will bring the New York Philharmonic to Ann Arbor for three extended appearances between 2015 and 2020. The residencies, underwritten by a seven-figure donation to UMS, will include multiple concerts each year, master classes and workshops for students and a range of public activities designed to connect the orchestra with the community in southeastern Michigan." Read the rest here.
