MSW Students Present at the Ann Arbor Human Rights Commission

 After an extensive selection process, the Ann Arbor Human Rights Commission selected three groups from Ayesha Ghazi Edwin’s Introduction to Community Organization, Management and Policy/Evaluation Practice classes to present their projects at the commission’s December meeting. The classes spent the semester investigating their equity issues in Ann Arbor,  interviewing stakeholders and community members and making a recommendation. The groups that presented were:

• Health and Internet Access: Vincent Asta, Michael Holtzman, Sophie Langerman and Brooke Reiter
• Housing and Racial Equity: Abigail Hampton, Bryant Hepp, Shannon Jajko, Christian Smith and Rachel Vanderbush 
• Mental Health and Policing: Mansi Brahmbhatt, Heather Burke, Courtney Callahan and Kayla Harper

The commission works to protect the human and civil rights of the people of Ann Arbor. Its nine members are Ann Arbor residents appointed by the mayor and city council. In addition, Ann Arbor City Council members Elizabeth Nelson and Travis Radina were also present, as was Kathy Wyatt, assistant to the sheriff of Washtenaw County.   

The commission members requested that students' projects be shared with the rest of council and other city commissions. All of the groups have been invited to participate in ongoing subcommittee meetings. The projects are stored in an "issue bank" that can be accessed by city council and city commission members.