DETROIT – Challenge Detroit, celebrating its fifth year, announced its 2016-2017 class of 42 Fellows, each of whom will get opportunity to live, work and play in metropolitan Detroit.
Fellows will work with their new host companies four days a week. Some of those companies are Slow Roll, EcoWorks, General Motors, Marketing Associates and Rossetti.
On the fifth day, Fellows will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the local community by partnering with area nonprofits on “challenge” projects. During these challenges, Fellows will leverage their diverse backgrounds and design thinking skills to develop actionable solutions for some of the city’s most complex issues and significant opportunities.
Selected Fellows underwent a rigorous application process and were selected from hundreds of other applicants. Each submitted a long-form essay and video, and also participated in an in-depth interview experience with host companies and program leadership. Ultimately, 42 Fellows were selected to join the this year’s class.
With many of the recently selected Fellows getting excited about the professional and social impact opportunities in the year ahead, the program staff and Detroit community at large have begun to get ready for one of the most well-rounded classes of Fellows yet. With Fellows from Detroit’s neighborhoods and all the way from California with varied backgrounds including architecture and business, this class is sure to be just as successful as its predecessors.
“I’m consistently impressed by the caliber of talent we continue to see in our Fellows,” said Deirdre Groves, the executive director of Challenge Detroit. “As we start preparing for Year Five, we’re looking forward to seeing how this new talent uses their unique skillsets at their host companies, as well as in projects critical to the city’s larger revitalization efforts.”
The 2016-2017 class of will start on August 29 and will bring the program total to nearly 170 Fellows. During their year in Detroit, Fellows will share their stories through blogging, video and social media platforms. For more information, and to meet all of the Year Five Fellows, visit www.ChallengeDetroit.org.
