New partnership leads to credits — and confidence

Students Eileen Bustillo-Cruz and Camila Casa-Reyes do almost everything together. They walk to school, share their favorite snacks and discuss the latest music.

They also started college together — as 16-year-old high school juniors.

Thanks to a dual-enrollment partnership between Detroit Public Schools Community District and UM-Dearborn, the Cass Tech High School students began as Dearborn Wolverines last fall, working on college credits and toward a certificate.

“Since I was little, I’ve wanted to go to college. It’s just something I’ve wanted to do, but I wasn’t sure what it would take or what it would look like,” Bustillo-Cruz says. “Now that I have a better idea, I am excited. I like the discussion, the critical thinking, the ideas we share. And I like seeing how I’m growing academically and getting prepared for what’s next in my life.”

In this program, students move through as a cohort, earning 16 college credits and graduating with the same certificate in community-based leadership and development that traditional UM-Dearborn students can earn. The DPSCD dual enrollment program admits students from Cass Tech, East English Village Preparatory Academy, Southeastern, Western International and The School at Marygrove who meet collegiate-level academic requirements.

“DPSCD administration shared that many of the students are highly involved in their communities, so we chose a program that focused on community engagement and the leadership needed within it,” says UM-Dearborn Undergraduate Enrollment Management Director Urana Pridemore.

The program, now in its third year, began online in Fall 2022. This academic year, it is hybrid, with in-person classes at the UM-Detroit Center. Although some students walk to the center, transportation is provided for those who need it. A new cohort starts each fall, which means about 60 students are enrolled at any given time. Pridemore is working with DPSCD to hold the classes on campus in the near future. There is no cost to the students — UM-Dearborn offers every student a 50% tuition scholarship and DPSCD is paying the remaining half. Students can use UM-Dearborn services like the Mardigian Library, academic advising and tutoring at the Writing Center. 

In Professor of Sociology Paul Draus’ introductory-level sociology course last semester, Bustillo-Cruz sat next to her friend Casa-Reyes — they often walked to the Detroit Center from Cass Tech together — and they reviewed their notes from the prior week while snacking on oranges. Both say the class gave them a glimpse into a future they want for themselves.

Bustillo-Cruz, who will be the first in her immediate family to attend college and plans to study engineering, says she took the class to test her abilities and learn more about what it takes to get a Michigan degree. What has she found? Each class is confirming that the college pathway is right for her.

To give students this experience, Pridemore worked closely with DPSCD and many others on campus over three years to develop the partnership, which is UM-Dearborn’s only dual enrollment program serving students from multiple schools and using a cohort model.

“Detroit Public Schools is focused on their students getting an education that will give them a head start into the next step in their lives. Working together, we came up with a pathway right for the students that will give them a college-going experience so they can see what it is like and if it’s a good fit for them. It’s also to help build confidence so they see they can succeed in college and give them confidence to know that a Michigan degree is within reach,” Pridemore says.

The partnership is part of a concerted effort to encourage more DPSCD graduates to attend UM-Dearborn. “We're so close to the city of Detroit, and we want to give students in the city of Detroit options. We want the University of Michigan-Dearborn to be a school that they're considering, and one of the ways that you consider a school is by experiencing their academics, their campus, their community, their faculty, their staff,” Pridemore explains. “It's also another way for us to engage a lot more closely with their staff or their instructors in their high schools that may not have had a strong relationship with UM-Dearborn. Dual enrollment is part of our commitment to increasing relationships in the public schools. But it is really a way for students to be able to engage with us in a meaningful way.” 

UM-Dearborn also runs a dual enrollment program on-site at Grosse Ile High School and is developing a similar one with Ferndale Public Schools. In addition, about 80 high school students each year attend classes on campus. 

Casa-Reyes says she is proud to be one of the dual-enrolled students. She looks forward to attending class.

“I really enjoy speaking up in class. Professor Draus listens to what we have to say and tailors his responses to our ideas and questions instead of continuing to only focus on the lesson,” Casa-Reyes says, speaking of her sociology course last semester. “I’m also learning a lot about where I live. Because of how Professor Draus teaches the class, many of us share what’s going on in our lives. I’ve learned that we might all be the same age and from Detroit, but our backgrounds and experiences are very different. But even with differences, we all share a similar goal to live good lives and succeed.”

Lecturer of Language, Culture and the Arts Mark Douglass — who is also a composer and conductor — taught a class he developed called “Exploring the Soundtrack of your Identity” for the second-year Detroit students last semester. The online class explored music composition while focusing on African culture and the importance of music within it. Students examined the role of music in resistance movements. created their own musical pieces by pulling in parts of their everyday life — a sibling’s yell, beatboxing, traffic noises or the church choir — and used those samples in a piece they developed using music editing software. Working in groups, students wrote lyrics in addition to making the musical composition.

“My philosophy is that if you are going to take someone somewhere, you first need to meet them where they are. I want them to know that you don’t have to be Mozart to be a composer,” Douglass says of his students. “I want them to know that there are Black conductors and composers. It wasn’t something I saw much growing up and I would have liked to have seen someone else who looks like me. Once you see someone who looks like you doing something you are interested in, it mentally opens a realm of possibilities.”

He says he’s learned from his students, just as much as they’ve learned from him. 

“Education is not listening to a sage on a stage. It’s an exchange of ideas and the growth that happens from that exchange,” Douglass says. “It’s a privilege to teach these talented students and get insight into what’s happening in their lives, along with their goals and dreams.”

Story by Sarah Tuxbury and Kristin Palm

UM-Dearborn faculty who helped develop the DPSCD dual enrollment program include Douglass, Draus, Associate Professor of Sociology Kevin Early, Associate Professor of Communication Troy Murphy, Associate Professor of Political Science Lara Rusch and Associate Professor of Public Health Natalie Sampson.

Community partners for this program include Detroit Public Schools, Urban Neighborhood Initiatives, Eastside Community Network, Congress of Communities and Community Development Advocates of Detroit, and the Wilson Foundation. 

If your school district is interested in a dual enrollment partnership with UM-Dearborn, please reach out to Urana Pridemore.