Changemakers | A Collectively Devised Play about the Early History of the University of Michigan School of Social Work - New Dates

As racial tensions rise on and off campus, three School of Social Work students overcome their differences as the School rallies itself for change in the face of the Great Depression.

This play, commissioned for the University of Michigan, School of Social Work Centennial (1921-2021), in collaboration with the Residential College Drama Program, focuses on the early history of the School and on the students and faculty who worked to create meaningful change in the world. This early period begins at the end of a global Spanish Flu pandemic and World War I and ends during the height of the Great Depression. This period saw the first undergraduate social work curriculum launched on the Ann Arbor campus and ends as the program moves to Detroit where the social work program remained until 1950.

Among the major themes is the struggle for racial justice, including challenging segregation on the University of Michigan campus. Early social work students were involved in an inter-racial alliance group, the Negro-Caucasian Club, that started in 1925 and the efforts of those students are depicted in the play.

This production is Directed by Aria Davis. Produced by Rich Tolman (SSW) and Kate Mendeloff (RC Drama). The cast includes faculty and students from the School of Social Work community.

New Dates