Education

Coverage of schools from pre-k and kindergarten through higher education, including trade and online classes.

Closed metro Detroit Caribou Coffees come back as Peet’s Coffee & Tea

By Newsroom

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November 14, 2013

Six closed metro Detroit Caribou coffee shops are re-opening this week and next week as Peet's Coffee & Tea. After months of renovations and employee training, Peet's Coffee & Teas opened Nov. 11 in Royal Oak, Novi, Shelby and Commerce townships and Rochester Hills. A shop in Grosse Pointe's Village business district is opening Nov. 18, as is a store in Ann Arbor. The new Peet's are retaining and retraining many Caribou employees and also hiring new ones as well as investing in upgrades and decor at the new shops. The Emeryville, Calif.-based company began selling the rarity of small-batch, high-quality roasted and brewed coffee from its first store in Berkeley, Calif. in 1966. The company is in the midst of an eastward expansion. It recently opened 18 stores in Ohio and four in the Pittsburgh area. Many of its new stores are just doors away from Starbucks, which opened in 1971, five years after Peet's first shop. Friends of Alfred Peet, the founder of Peet's Coffee & Tea, opened Starbucks after being taught by Peet, a Dutch immigrant who, as the story goes, was appalled by the coffee Americans drank. He wanted to enlighten them and teach them how to find the best beans and make a better cup. Starbucks initially sold only roasted beans, not brewed coffee, but has since far surpassed Peet's in size. Source: Peet's Coffee & Tea Writer: Kim North Shine

Latest in Education

Superfly Kids finds flyaway success with superhero capes business

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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November 14, 2013

What started as a sewing hobby has achieved liftoff for a pair of intrepid entrepreneurs in Livonia. Excerpt: "...one Michigan company is moving faster than a speeding bullet — by selling superhero capes. Livonia-based Superfly Kids makes and sells capes — custom capes, to be exact — for kids and a few adults. And their sales have taken off like, well, Superman. From 2010 to this year, the company, owned by Holly Bartman and Justin Draplin, has seen its revenues leap from about $260,000 to an estimated $2.4 million. They are expected to double next year." More here.

Metro Detroit home prices jump 42% in October

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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November 14, 2013

Buyers are willing to put more money where their mouth is when it comes to purchasing a home this year. Excerpt: "October marked the eighth straight month that the median selling price in Metro Detroit rose by double digits annually. According to Realcomp, the Farmington Hills-based Multiple Listing Service for southeast Michigan, the median selling price for homes in Metro Detroit was up 41.9 percent year-over-year last month to $127,000... Homes sold quicker in October of this year, spending 22 fewer days on the market at 56 days." More here.

Guest Blogger: Melinda Weinstein

By Melinda Weinstein

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Arts & Culture

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November 7, 2013

Museums are repositories of the past, but they're not getting buried by new technology. Melinda Weinstein, a professor of English at Lawrence Technological University, gets a snapshot of why and how the leadership at Detroit's premiere museums is carving a digital future.

Mobile Comply adds 5 staff in downtown Pontiac

By Newsroom

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Education

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November 7, 2013

The app economy isn't just a boom for software developers and the companies that use their technology. It's also a growth opportunity for educators aiming to teach the world the advantages of mobile. That has been the case with Mobile Comply, a downtown Pontiac-based company that helps educate businesses and institutions (think higher education) on how best to leverage mobile technology. "We have doubled in size every year since we started in 2010," says Elaina Farnsworth, CEO of Mobile Comply. That means Mobile Comply now employs a growing staff of employees and a large number of independent contractors. It has hired five people over the last year, including curriculum writers, trainers and mobile developers. Farnsworth credits the rapid adoption of mobile technology since the launch of the iPhone six years ago as the driving force behind her company's growth. The serial entrepreneur sold her education technology company in 2006 and started Mobile Comply a few years later after seeing the change that would sweep the technology industry. She thinks that growth momentum will continue to build as mobile technology continues to become more ingrained in mainstream America and abroad. "I expect to triple in size over the next three years," Farnsworth says. "I also expect to be recognized on an international level." Source: Elaina Farnsworth, CEO of Mobile Comply Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Dynasty Media Network opens office in downtown Ferndale

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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November 7, 2013

Dynasty Media Network has turned a closed storefront located in downtown Ferndale into an office, sound stage, production area and all-around workspace for digital designers, marketers and technological engineers to design all manner of promotions and communications. Owner and Founder Michael Rott has a long list of well-known clients and promising start-ups and plans to add to it from the new space and with staff that builds websites, develops apps, produces videos, TV commercials and digital business presentations. DMN plans to add six full-time positions in 2014 and is also partnering with the College for Creative Studies to offer paid internship opportunities that can nuture a future generation of digital designers. DMN also offers technology consulting, business strategy, audio visual systems, motion graphics and 3D animation, live streaming, corporate webinars, social media management and Apple computer education as a certified member of the Apple Consultants Network. Rott previously served as one of Michigan's lead creatives for Apple Inc. for several years prior to forming Dynasty Media Network. "My passion for business, special event production and cutting-edge technology has led me to this point in my career," Rott said when he announced plans to open the new office for Dynasty Media Network last year. "At DMN we support individuals and businesses through creative design, effective marketing strategies and innovative technology solutions." Source: Michael Rott, owner and founder, Dynasty Media Network Writer: Kim North Shine

Treat Dreams ice creamery expands into specially-flavored donuts

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Arts & Culture

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November 7, 2013

Treat Dreams, the Ferndale ice creamery that opened three years ago and expanded its space earlier this year, is diving into another sweet endeavor: donuts. Wicked Donuts will open inside the Treat Dreams store at 22965 Woodward Avenue on Nov. 16. Diners can wash down the creatively flavored dough with Detroit-based Great Lakes Coffee. Like the ice cream, the donuts will come in unusual flavors -- at least 12 to start with -- and some classics. Initially customers will have 12 flavors to choose from: Kooky Monster, Chocolate Covered Coffee Bean, Classic Chocolate Frosted, Pumpkin Bourbon Gingersnap, Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip. German Chocolate, Chocolate Candy Pieces, Boston Cream Pie, Peanut Butter Cup, Coconut Lemon Curd, Creme Brulee, Maple Bacon and Pumpkin Pie. Owner Scott Moloney, who calls himself the chief dreamologist, says the donuts have been in the research phase for awhile. "We have wanted to bring unique donuts to the Detroit market for quite some time, and with our recent expansion and the beginning of fall this seems like the perfect time," Moloney says in announcement of the launch of Wicked Donuts. "Along with the addition of Great Lakes Coffee and espresso drinks, free WiFi and ample guest seating, we hope that Treat Dreams becomes a destination for remote offices and off-site business meetings." Source: Scott Moloney, owner, Treat Dreams and Wicked Donuts Writer: Kim North Shine

New diner steps in for closed one in downtown Clawson

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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November 7, 2013

RJ's Diner is soon to open in the downtown Clawson spot long occupied by Grumpy's. RJ's will be a 50's era diner and serve comfort foods like meat loaf and mac & cheese, according to the Clawson Downtown Development Authority. Opening day at the new restaurant at 230 S. Main Street is expected before winter, after recipes are perfected, renovations are complete and employees are hired. It's "always sad to see one business leave but so nice when another relocates and finds their new home here," says Joan Horton, executive director of the Clawson DDA. Source: Joan Horton, Clawson Downtown Development Authority Writer: Kim North Shine

Stayin Alive Novi revives nightclub scene

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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November 7, 2013

After months of renovations that involved a gigantic disco ball, '70s and '80s era decor, lava lamp tables and a massive LED dance floor, Stayin Alive Novi's owners are looking to be filled with dancers and fun-seekers on weekends and event planners and private parties other nights of the week. The vision for Stayin Alive, which opened last week in the Fountain Walk of Novi at 44325 Twelve Mile Road, is to bring back disco -- and '80s and '90s music -- in a big, memorable space for all sorts of get-togethers. The dance club, which also has a patio and serves signature disco ball drinks, the Saturday Night Fever and Super Freak, from a 50-foot-long bar with iconic '70s and '80s logos on the walls and TV screens, will seek out corporate planners, party hosts, bachelorettes and even divorcees looking for a loud and crazy night out. Events are already booking, including time in the VIP Shag Room, and last week's opening weekend was packed. Vladimir Mirkovich, J. Kyle Hagerty and Brian DJ Godfather Jeffries, all metro Detroiters, are teaming up on the venture with Lucky Strike Entertainment. Source: Vladimir Mirkovich, managing member, Stayin Alive Novi LLC Writer: Kim North Shine

Ferndale gets new streetscape with extra bells and whistles

By Newsroom

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Arts & Culture

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October 31, 2013

A six-month-long rebuild of West 9 Mile Road in downtown Ferndale is complete and showing off what it has to offer to people who drive, walk or bike the stretch of road that was redone in an effort to unify and promote the business district, create public art and gathering spaces, and update and maintain the city infrastructure. The $1.8-million project paid for the replacement of 2,600 feet of outdated water main and also remade the roadway and sidewalks from Livernois to Pinecrest with a new streetscape. The project, dubbed How the West was One, was paid for by the city of Ferndale, the Michigan Department of Transportation and the Ferndale Downtown Development Authority, which has long wanted the west part of 9 Mile to be more connected to the east side across Woodward Avenue. You'll know the new western half by the bright yellow park benches, recycling bins, bike parking loops, new street lighting, plants, trees and shrubbery. In addition, the road was narrowed and designed with on-street parking, better crosswalks and bike lane arrows that give cyclists a designated, ideally safer place to ride. In addition, the new Kenton Pocket Park was carved out of the project and while the construction was disruptive, a new business opened, as did a new public art gallery. Source: Chris Hughes, spokesperson, Ferndale Downtown Development Authority Writer: Kim North Shine