Service Engagement at UMSI

Dear Prospective Students,

This is a great time for you to be considering the opportunities that graduate school can provide and I wanted to bring to your attention a few programs that might be of interest that are part of the “Initiative for Information Impact” here at the University of Michigan School of Information:

The Global Information Engagement Program partners non-profit, research, and educational organizations in an international setting with carefully selected student teams. For 2016, GIEP will take place in Cape Town, South Africa. In early summer, the student teams will then depart to South Africa and spend six to 12 weeks implementing an information tool for groups that have high societal impact. GIEP is a curricular program at UMSI; Students will receive six credits for pre-departure activities and the in-country experience through enrollment in SI 691 through pre-enrollment in Winter 2016.

Michigan Makers uses action research and service learning to explore teaching, learning, and evidence of skills in non-classroom settings. In the 2015-2016 academic year, UMSI students are working local public schools in "maker-style" activities. Michigan Makers helps local youth engage with technology through tinkering and creating, while promoting group work and peer mentoring.

Community Impact Projects are an opportunity for interested students who wish to fine-tune their professional skills through engagement with information-related projects proposed by local community partners. Students, either as an individual or with members of their student organization, can work on projects that range from a day to an entire academic year and that create significant impact to an organization that is lacking in information-related skills, resources, or technology. Projects include organization and processing of collections, website design and users analysis, database building, and general information consultation. Projects for 2015 included digitizing film for the Ann Arbor District Library and website redesign for the non-profit, Dagbe.

Citizen Interaction Design: Student teams, formed around challenges presented by the partner organization, the City of Jackson, Michigan, work to create new information tools and services that fundamentally reimagine how citizens interact with their local governments. The project offers many opportunities for engaged learning for UMSI students.

A2DataDive is a hack-a-thon-like event in which students and data scientists partner to analyze data sets from community partners. These are both events in which students can take on significant leadership roles, or join the event the day of.

UMSI MLK Service Day is a yearly event in January where SI students, faculty and staff can volunteer at local nonprofits in Ann Arbor, Detroit and Ypsilanti. Participating organizations in 2016 included the Detroit Sound Conservancy, 826 Michigan and the Ann Arbor Summer Festival.

Peace Corps Partnerships are two initiatives between the U.S. Peace Corps and the School of Information. The Coverdell Fellow Programs offers financial support and academic credit to those who have served in the Peace Corps prior to joining UMSI. In addition, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers use the skills they developed working abroad to complete internships in underserved U.S. communities, gaining both academic credit and valuable on-the-job experience. The Master’s International Program allows students to start their MSI, take that knowledge into the world while serving in the Peace Corps, then return to complete their degree. Participants in this program work abroad as Peace Corps volunteers for 27 months and receive language, cross-cultural, and technical training to enhance the hands-on experience they will acquire. Students will also have time to develop an international academic project while volunteering in their host country.

The School of Information cares deeply about connecting people, information and technology in order to make a difference in our communities and for the world at large. These programs and opportunities are examples of how through our curriculum and student engagement, UMSI enables its members to change the world. When talking to our students, staff and faculty please be sure to ask about these unique opportunities to engage with the community and see which programs would be most interesting for you.

Thanks,
Michael Gates
MSI Class of ‘17