Mental health and social work advocates are pushing for legislative change to shift Michigan's social worker licensing process from a test-based approach to a practice-driven alternative that has proven successful in other states.

As part of the Make it in Michigan Strategy, the state of Michigan has new finance tools and opportunities to convert vacant land into housing via the Transformational Brownfield Fund and tax increment funding. The State Land Bank Authority and Michigan Community Capital are working with state, local, and federal organizations to develop attainable workforce housing in their communities.   

“Innovative thinking coming out of Detroit's eastside neighborhoods is nothing new,” says Dan Gilmartin, CEO and Executive Director of the Michigan Municipal League.

Meeting the challenges and complexity of affordable housing one unit at a time takes patience, financial support and commitment from community development organizations. Read about one young family’s opportunity to enter Detroit’s housing market in a neighborhood they love.  

One of the barriers to accessing COVID vaccinations for the disability community has been transportation. In response, Disability Rights Michigan has unveiled an interactive guide to help users navigate the complex transportation system in the state.

Black developers are involved and benefiting in higher-stakes projects, but there are still numerous underserved neighborhoods waiting to see the same levels of investment as Downtown and Midtown.

More than 100 people came to a two-day clinic in Grand Rapids to get COVID vaccinations. It’s one of the many ways Disability Rights Michigan is using a grant to protect the health of the state’s most vulnerable populations. 

The Peers to Higher Education program helps peer support specialists find funding and child care to support them in building a career in mental health.

Established by Governor Whitmer, the Growing Michigan Together Council works to develop a long-term plan of action to address many issues of concern across the state. Different goals include jobs, talent, and people; infrastructure and places; PreK-12 and higher education, and revenue. Block by Block spoke with the Executive Director of the Growing Michigan Together Council and Michigan’s first Chief Growth Officer Hilary Doe, and Melvin Henley at Community Economic Development Association of Michigan to hear about the council’s report.   

Recent data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services shows that 91% of kindergarteners in 2022 were up to date on their vaccinations, while rates of younger ages are seeing a decline.