Kids and Education

U-M Detroit Center matches teens, mentors, robots

By Newsroom

●

February 18, 2010

The three key legs to enhancing education at the University of Michigan Detroit Center include teens, mentors, and robots.The university paired more than 100 high school students at Detroit Public Schools with mentors so they could compete in the FIRST Robotics 2010 national competition. The students and mentors built robots for the competition at the Michigan Engineering Zone.The FIRST Robotics competition is often seen as a stepping stone for students going down the robotics and engineering career path. Think the people who create and manage the robots in assembly lines and other commercial activities. It's also viewed as a team building exercise for students, similar to a sport."I am seeing that they are becoming more self confident and that's what this is all about," says Jeanne Murabito, executive director for student affairs at the University of Michigan's College of Engineering. "That's the best part."This is the first year of the program, which was made possible through the cooperation of the university and Detroit Public Schools. There are plans to continue it next year.Source: Jeanne Murabito, executive director for student affairs at the University of Michigan's College of EngineeringWriter: Jon Zemke

Latest in Kids and Education

$6.6M in grants for Macomb County and LTU defense industry projects

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

Macomb and Oakland counties are really raking in the cash to grow their defense industry firms, with Macomb Community College and Lawrence Technological University taking in millions of dollars.Macomb Community College recently received $5 million (mostly from the federal stimulus package) to help grow and develop its defense and homeland security industry. Much of that money will be spent providing technical training to local residents so they can enter the defense industry workforce.This money (and training) will prepare people for knowledge-based jobs, such as logistics, engineering, and advanced technology. It is part of Macomb County's growing defense industry economy and its budding relationship with the U.S. Dept. of Defense's Defense Acquisition University.Lawrence Tech received a $1.6 million federal grant to develop and test stronger and lighter armor made of composite materials for military vehicles. This will be done through Lawrence Tech's Center for Innovative Materials Research and the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center. The funding comes from the 2010 defense appropriations legislation.Source: Macomb Community College and Lawrence Technological UniversityWriter: Jon Zemke

MyInsuranceExpert.com hires 45, plans to add 50 more

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

Three years ago Lorne Zalesin and two colleagues saw a demand in need of satisfying and went for it. The result is MyInsuranceExpert.com, one of Metro Detroit's fastest-growing start-ups.The Troy-based firm now employs 65 people after hiring 45 last year. It now plans 50 more hires this year, starting with a friend-of-employee recruiting session later this month. As far as Zalesin and his partners are concerned, the sky is the limit for MyInsuranceExpert.com's growth prospects."The market is exponentially growing right now," Zalesin says. "There is a lot of opportunity."The trio had been working for a health insurance company specializing in growth plans when they saw the demand for individual health insurance plans. They struck out on their own soon after and found their pot of start-up gold at the end of that rainbow.The company helps individuals find the best health insurance package for their needs. That often leads to rates that are much less than if they did the searching themselves. MyInsuranceExpert has become so good at this that it is now the second largest company in a rapidly growing sector."It's very targeted to the client looking for health insurance," Zalesin says.Source: Lorne Zalesin, CEO of MyInsuranceExpert.comWriter: Jon Zemke

Lawrence Tech creates new green building degree

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

If green building is part of the evolution of construction, then Lawrence Technological University is adapting its curriculum to flourish in this new habitat.The Southfield-based university is now offering a five-year program that combines the bachelors and masters degrees of architectural engineering. The idea is to give the graduates a better understanding of both worlds so they can incorporate sustainable principles more easily in their work.Graduates will be qualified to become licensed engineers. Architectural engineers are in high demand because they have the ability to analyze a site and take all of the factors into account to build the greenest building possible. Those factors include building orientation, heating design, and analyzing the most efficient water usage.Students of the program will be able to take advantage of the sustainability movement in architecture by designing and building structures with minimal carbon footprint. It's widely believed that these architectural engineers will assume leadership roles in the sustainable building design sector.Source: Lawrence Technological UniversityWriter: Jon Zemke

Pontiac’s DASI Solutions plans 6 hires

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

DASI Solutions learned all about the value of diversifying its client base well before the idea became fashionable in Metro Detroit. It's a lesson that is serving the Pontiac-based firm well as it prepares for a growth spurt in 2010.DASI Solutions sells, trains, and does tech support for engineering software programs, namely SolidWorks CAD design software. Since beginning this work in 1995, the company quickly discovered that many of the automotive firms were happy with the systems they were using. That forced DASI Solutions to find customers in a variety of emerging sectors, such as robotics, alternative energy, and bio-medical devices."I built my customer base in a primarily non-automotive sector," says David Darbyshire, who co-owns DASI Solutions with his brother Richard.That has allowed the company to hold its ground throughout the recession and to keep its employee base at 30 people and a handful of summer interns. Darbyshire expects to add another six hires this year."I see us growing significantly," Darbyshire says.DASI Solutions is also helping other companies grow by retraining automotive engineers to use its software. The idea is then these engineers will be ready for jobs in the emerging sectors in which DASI Solutions has established itself.Source: David Darbyshire, co-owner of DASI SolutionsWriter: Jon Zemke

Greenleaf Trust building rises in Birmingham

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

It's cold, grey, and dreary outside these days, but the Greenleaf Trust Building is really blooming in downtown Birmingham. Work on the building is entering its final stages as it charges toward a May finish and June grand opening. The five-story building's exterior is pretty much finished and the interior build-out is set to begin in earnest soon. The construction can be monitored here."Construction of the Greenleaf Trust Building is moving along very well," says Patti Owens, vice president and managing director of Catalyst Development, which is in charge of constructing the building.Greenleaf Trust is going for silver LEED certification with environmentally friendly features like a 1,500-square-foot green roof, natural lighting, and numerous water- and energy-efficiency fixtures. The Eckert Wordell Architecture-designed structure is also replacing an abandoned gas station at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Maple Road. The first floor will be occupied by Zazios, a modern Italian restaurant based in Kalamazoo. The second and third floors of the 50,000-square-foot building will be dedicated to office space, some of which will be occupied by Kalamazoo-based Greenleaf Trust for its Metro Detroit offices. Five rental apartments will go on the fourth and fifth floors.Source: Patti Owens, vice president and managing director of Catalyst DevelopmentWriter: Jon Zemke

TruArx hits triple digit growth in Farmington Hills

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

TruArx is reporting rapid growth. Growth so fast and furious it measures in the triple digits.The IT firm hit record growth last year, achieving a 176 percent increase in 2009. Sales growth was also up significantly, by 88 percent. It accomplished this by offering its products in a software-as-a-service package. Its clients include Fishnet and Accuvant.TruArx specializes in IT governance, risk, and compliance for more than 400 regulations and standards. It implements and services the IT needs of its customers. The company is headquartered in Farmington Hills and has offices in Austin, Columbus, Denver, Nashville, and Washington, DC. Source: TruArxWriter: Jon Zemke

New Chinatown developing near Ypsilanti?

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

Southeast Michigan has lacked a real Chinatown for decades. A couple of Asian-American entrepreneurs in the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area are trying to change that with their new expanded offerings.Excerpt:Could the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area organically grow its own Chinatown now that Hua Xing is expanding its Asian market business to include an adjacent restaurant? If plans for further expansion come to fruition, the answer could be yes.Xingchou Wang, the owner of Hua Xing Asian Market and his management team have researched and toured many of North America's major metropolitan areas and noticed they all have something that Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti and Metro Detroit doesn't."The one thing they all have in common is a Chinatown," says Steve Xiao, the general manager of Hua Xing. "We don't have one."Read the rest of the story here.

Construction to start on Pontiac’s Holland Center

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

Hammers and shovels are about to start swinging at the old Wallace E. Holland Center, which is about to become the new base of operations in Pontiac for the Salvation Army Eastern Michigan Division.The non-profit will rehab and expand the existing space as part of a $3 million project. The current Salvation Army building on 34 Oakland Ave. will be put up for sale.The building on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. was originally constructed in the mid-1980s. It has been vacant for the last five years, a casualty of budget cuts at the city of Pontiac, which is now in receivership. The city and the Salvation Army have been working on the deal for the last few years.The Salvation Army plans to raze 3,300 of the building's original 17,984 square feet. After that it plans another 10,248-square-foot addition to house its Oakland County services.Source: Salvation Army Eastern Michigan DivisionWriter: Jon Zemke

Oakland Parks acquires 186 more acres

By Newsroom

●

Arts and Culture

●

February 18, 2010

Oakland County Parks and Recreation has its hands on 186 acres of new parkland near Clarkston, but it has its eyes on more opportunities in both the northern and southern section of the county.The county department recently bought 186 acres for $2.8 million, with $945,000 of that coming from the state. The land is adjacent to Independence Oaks County Park. The expansion will bring the park to 1,274 acres, making it the largest park in a county that already has 13 parks with 6,686 acres under its control. The land includes 31-acre Upper Bushman Lake and a number of trails and camping areas. The idea is that expanding this portion will bring nature to more children in Metro Detroit. The space should be ready for use by late this year or early 2011."Our goal is to get more young people outdoors," says Dan Stencil, executive officer for Oakland County Parks and Recreation.The department is also looking at opportunities to expand its park offerings in both the northern section of the county (where most of the parkland is located) and in the denser, urban areas to the south. One of the projects it is eyeing is the proposed rail trail from downtown Royal Oak to Birmingham.Source: Dan Stencil, executive officer for Oakland County Parks and RecreationWriter: Jon Zemke