Community service

Kings-Tulare Counties Migrant Ministry Records

kschmeling — Mon, 02 Dec 2013 10:43:02 -0500

The Kings-Tulare Counties (California) Migrant Ministry was formed by the Christian Migrant Ministry in 1959. Its purpose was to administer the Christian gospel to seasonal farm workers with a direct focus upon religious education, child-care, teenage and adult vocational and literacy training. Religious and community organizers who worked with the K-TCMM hoped that organized farm workers could exert influence, challenge established injustices and improve conditions on and off the job.

The files reflect the work of Rev. James Drake of the Christian Migrant Ministry, and National Farm Workers Association union activist, Gilbert Padilla. The collection contains correspondence, newsletters, by-laws, poverty studies and personal notes of Drake and Padilla covering their work with the Kings-Tulare Counties Migrant Ministry and the Tulare County Farm Workers Organization.

Merrill-Palmer Institute Records

drice — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 17:18:00 -0500

The Merrill-Palmer Institute was founded in 1920 by an endowment from Lizzie Merrill Palmer. Throughout its 61years of independent operation, the Institute was greatly respected and internationally known as one of the top institutions for education, training and research in Child Development. Merrill-Palmer staff conducted and published studies on families and children, operated a nursery school, children’s camps and clubs, offered marriage and family counseling, and performed community service work. The Institute accepted undergraduate and graduate students from the U. S. and internationally and taught courses and provided research and laboratory experience unavailable elsewhere.

The collection illustrates the Institute’s commitment to research, education, and outreach through documentation of its programs, projects, and administration. It includes research and studies the Institute undertook, course information, nursery school, camp and club information, correspondence with students, individuals and organizations, presidential and faculty files, and day to day operational information.

Merrill-Palmer Institute: Dr. J. William Rioux Records

drice — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 13:23:36 -0400

J. William Rioux was the president of the Merrill-Palmer Institute from 1967-1973, prior
to which he worked for the U.S. Department of Education. He was a native of Detroit
and received his Ed. D. at Wayne State University. During his time at Merrill-Palmer he
worked to diversify the student body, establish a graduate degree program, work with
urban youth, and bring more students into the program. He also emphasized
dissemination and publication of research by Merrill-Palmer faculty and staff.

The J. William Rioux Records contain mainly administrative files, which emphasize
Rioux’s commitment to urban and low-income youth and his push to bring in more
students and get them involved with the local Detroit community.

Merrill-Palmer Institute: Dr. Michael D. Usdan Records

drice — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 14:12:09 -0400

Dr. Michael D. Usdan was president of the Merrill-Palmer Institute from 1974-1977.
Educated at Brown University and Teachers College at Columbia University, Usdan
worked as a professor at City University of New York before joining Merrill-Palmer. He
published widely, writing mainly on educational politics. His records document his work
on urban and lower income youth in the Detroit area, as well as research and conferences
focusing on urban poor, parent-child relationships and the impact of unemployment on
families.

Merrill-Palmer Institute: Dr. Pauline Park Wilson Knapp Records

drice — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 13:47:04 -0400

Dr. Pauline Park Wilson Knapp was the president and director of the Merrill-Palmer
Institute from 1952-1967. Knapp received her B.S. in Home Economics from the
University of Kentucky and M.A. and Ph. D in Psychology from Columbia University.
She established the first Child Development Center in Georgia in 1928, was head of the
Department of Family and Life at the University of Alabama from 1941-45 and the Dean
of the School of Home Economics at the University of Georgia from 1946-52. In 1952
she rejoined the Merrill-Palmer Institute as president, returning to the school where she
was previously a student (1920s) and a staff member (1932-41). During her years as
president, Knapp broadened the school’s emphasis on parent education to incorporate
research on human development and increased research on applied child and family
issues. Under her leadership she increased the schools scope, built two new facilities,
The Program Center and the Skillman Center, and oversaw the largest increase in student
enrollment and faculty appointments in the history of the institute.

Knapp’s records cover day-to-day activities and long range programs, as well as the shift
in emphasis the institute underwent during Knapp’s tenure. Included are programs and
correspondence which highlight Knapp’s close relationship with students and supporters
through which she increased the influence of Merrill-Palmer and ensured continued
student enrollment. The collection also covers committees and boards Knapp served on,
as well as research conducted by the Institute, as a whole.

Merrill-Palmer Institute: Dr.William McKee Records

drice — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 12:00:56 -0400

Dr. William Wakefield McKee was with the Merrill-Palmer Institute for 30 years in a variety of roles. He began as a faculty member in 1953, became Vice-President in 1957 and served as Acting-President during the 1973-73 school year, eventually retiring in 1983. McKee received his B. A. from the University of North Carolina, his B. D. from Yale Divinity School, a S. T. M. from Union Theological Seminary, NY, and his Ph. D. from Yale. Prior to coming to Merrill-Palmer he worked for the YMCA, the American Friends Service Commission, and the Edward W. Hagen Foundation. In addition to his work at the institute McKee was also active on many Detroit area boards of directors and trustees including the Highland Park School District, Girl Scouts of Metropolitan Detroit, Homemaker Service of Detroit, and Michigan Adult Education.

The collection covers his years at Merrill-Palmer and highlights his flexibility to work for four different presidents, each with their own visions for the institute. It documents his teaching and advising duties of both graduate and undergraduate students, his work on various institute committees and boards, his responsibilities as Chairman of the Teaching Area of the institute as well as his administrative duties as Vice-President.

Women for the United Foundation Records

kschmeling — Fri, 04 Dec 2015 14:37:26 -0500

In 1949, 17,000 women volunteers helped the United Foundation achieve success with its Torch Drive campaign. In 1954, it was decided that an auxiliary women’s group would be formed to work year-round in support of United Foundation projects. It was called the United Foundation Women’s Organization (UFWO). By 1964, the name was changed to Women for the United Foundation (WUF).

The organization works under a set of by-laws and consists of an Executive Board, Board of Directors, Advisory Board, and various committees. WUF set out to inform the Detroit tri-county community about United Foundation services and soon became instrumental in the success of several United Foundation projects. WUF volunteers participate in activities important to the goals of the United Foundation as a whole, including childcare, elder care, religious activities, community or civic programs, cultural or educational activities, and health related programs. One of these programs, originally called “Inforama” and later called “Health-O-Rama,” offers free health tests to the public and became an annual event in the 1960s with full participation by WUF in cooperation with the United Health Organization. The Heart of Gold Award is annually given to a select group of outstanding volunteers in the metropolitan Detroit area in recognition of their service. The Heart of Gold Council is in charge of determining the recipients of this award, and was established in 1967 by the WUF, the Women’s Advertising Club of Detroit, and the Central Business District Association.

Eleanor Josaitis — Hands Across the Racial Divide

wlefevre — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 09:32:36 -0400

As a symbol, it is exquisite in its simplicity. Two hands inside a circle, one black and one white, almost but never quite touching across the racial divide. This has been the logo of Focus: HOPE, an organization fighting for basic human rights in Detroit and Southeast Michigan for over forty years. And until her death last week, one of the leaders of the fight was Eleanor Josaitis. read more »

Subject Focus: Poverty and Charity in Turn-of-the-Century Detroit

teller — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 14:39:53 -0500

In the late 19th century Detroit’s industrial base and burgeoning prosperity quickly attracted immigrants from across the country and around the world, increasing the city’s population six-fold between 1860 and 1900. While the strong and industrious were able to find steady work, the city proved to be harsh to ill or injured laborers, the elderly and widowed, and others for whom life had not been kind. Numerous public and private social service organizations and charities formed to serve the needs of the growing number of Detroit residents living in poverty. read more »

United Way for Southeastern Michigan: 100 Years of Giving

drice — Thu, 18 Oct 2018 09:07:38 -0400

In 2017, United Way for Southeastern Michigan (UWSM) celebrated a major milestone: 100 years of continuous promotion of social services to those in need. In addition, the organization’s 10-year plan Agenda for Change concludes this year. Targeting the greater Detroit region, it focuses on access to education, income, read more »

Podcast: "She Never Gave Up on This City:" Remembering Firebrand Detroit City Councilwoman Maryann Mahaffey

teller — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 10:36:35 -0500

Labor and Urban Affairs archivist Shae Rafferty shares how Maryann Mahaffey's college summer job as recreation director at the Poston Japanese internment camp in Arizona in 1945 strengthened her resolve to fight against discrimination and help those in need later in her career in social work. read more »