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Arts & Culture : People

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Roberta Lucas

Melinda Clynes Saturday, August 03, 2013
Roberta Lucas, early learning director and training specialist for Living Arts’ ACT 1 program, grew up with a costume shop in the attic and a puppet theater in the basement, and produced outdoor productions each summer with other neighborhood kids. With the same enthusiasm, she is bringing artistic expression into Detroit classrooms to build literacy and encourage young students to create, express, grow and learn.

John Weiss

Noelle Lothamer Saturday, July 27, 2013
John Weiss was fortunate enough to discover his passion for working with youth early in his career. In his current position as executive director at the Neutral Zone, a teen center in Ann Arbor, he channels this passion by ensuring that youth are involved and engaged at every level of the organization.

Rashid Faisal

Melinda Clynes Thursday, July 04, 2013
Rashid Faisal, principal of Henry Ford Academy: School for Creative Studies in Detroit, is excited to be an educator in this day and age as we shift from an industrial society to a knowledge-based society. He says that it’s time for schools, like the public middle and high school academy he leads, to abandon archaic practices and embrace new practices that evolve and change with our ever-changing world.

Kim Dabbs

Melinda Clynes Monday, June 10, 2013
As executive director of West Michigan Center for Arts and Technology (WMCAT), Kim Dabbs believes that all young people should have equal access to choices that will help them realize their potential. WMCAT’s Teen Arts Program helps to remove barriers to opportunity so that kids can flourish. 

Carol Hofgartner

Melinda Clynes Monday, May 13, 2013
As the founder and executive director of Art Road Nonprofit, Carol Hofgartner is inspired by art and sees how artistic creativity feeds so many careers. That’s why her goal is to have art class brought back to every school classroom in Detroit. 

Rhonda Buckley

Melinda Clynes Tuesday, January 22, 2013
After extensive education in music and business, more than a decade of teaching experience, and the eventual founding of a multidisciplinary arts center for inner-city youth in Washington, DC, Rhonda Buckley was lured back to Michigan when MSU asked her to serve as associate dean of the College of Music -- and develop a community music program in Detroit, her hometown. 

Aaron Dworkin

Amy Kuras Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Aaron Dworkin is a 2005 MacArthur fellow, President Obama’s first appointee to the National Council on the Arts, and founder and president of the Sphinx Organization. He’s dedicated to providing young people of color in Detroit and Flint the opportunity to succeed in classical music, however they define that dream.

Jo Anne Mondowney

Amy Kuras Sunday, November 11, 2012
Jo Anne Mondowney, executive director of the Detroit Public Library, calls herself an accidental librarian, drawn to the profession by the library’s ability to improve quality of life for anyone regardless of economic resources. Encouraging her staff to take risks and be independent is a hallmark of her leadership style.

Brother Jerry Smith

Amy Kuras Tuesday, August 21, 2012
As executive director of the Capuchin Soup Kitchen on Detroit’s near-eastside, Brother Jerry Smith sees his role as helping people grow and develop. That belief extends from the youngest children in after-school programs to agency staff, some of whom first came to the soup kitchen for services.

Melanie Knoll

Amy Kuras Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Melanie Knoll is co-executive director with Cara Graninger of Living Arts, an arts and community development group serving the southwest Detroit community with arts-infused education and dance programs. She grew up in the neighborhood she now serves and finds it very rewarding to provide opportunities to children just like herself. 

Miranda Sue Hartmann

Veronica Gracia-Wing Friday, April 27, 2012
As the artistic director of All-of-Us Express Children’s Theatre in Lansing, Miranda Sue Hartmann shines a light on the talents of children, creating a safe, nurturing environment where children discover the pleasure and rewards of success. 
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