On July 1, UM-Dearborn will launch the Center for Labor and Community Studies on campus. The center will be housed in the Academic Support Center building.
The center will incorporate the Labor Studies Center currently housed at U-M Ann Arbor and provide additional programs, research, seminars and other activities for the labor community and other local groups. The Labor Studies Center in Ann Arbor opened in 1957 and has been providing educational offerings in the fields of labor relations. The current staff is dedicated to adult education that empowers workers to keep pace with the changing global economy.
Bruce Pietrykowski has been named the center's new director and will lead the transition of the Labor Studies Center to our campus and all future programming. Pietrykowski has done extensive research in economics and labor-related issues. He has served as the director of the Urban and Regional Studies Program and launched the UAW-Ford UM-Dearborn partnership online worker education program. Skip Turner and Billie Rohl, both from the Labor Studies Center in Ann Arbor, will continue their work at the newly created center on our campus.
Southeast Michigan has been on the forefront of the subject of labor and education. Local labor leaders are optimistic the center will strengthen the region's educational offerings and community outreach on the subject of labor.
The Center for Labor and Community Studies will enhance the broad array of leadership and engagement programs currently taking place on campus. The center will allow for additional research and will create new opportunities for scholarship and community impact in southeast Michigan.
