Lauren Schandevel and Meaghan Wheat, both CASC students, were nominated by the University of Michigan community and selected as 2018 Michigan Daily Students of the Year. Both Schandevel and Wheat push conversation and change within the campus, our community and beyond.
Schandevel created “Being Not-Rich at U-M” to address the needs of low-income students.She also helped start the Michigan Affordability and Advocacy Coalition, a group dedicated to bettering the quality of life for low-income students by addressing issues ranging from renters’ rights, food insecurity and access to vaccines. “As a Ford student, CASC has taught me to work directly with communities when developing and implementing policy. Community organizing and public policy go hand in hand, in my opinion — and that is a belief I inject into all of my work.”
Wheat is a facilitator with the Summer Youth Dialogues program. The program brings together high school students of several racial and ethnic backgrounds for educational capacity-building workshops and early exploration of practical community projects. “Working with youth in educational institutions has always been a passion of mine, and CASC has taught me vital skills in continuing my work. Going forward, I hope to continue using my organizing skills to bridge the gap between students, teachers and administrators. Creating those types of spaces and being passionate about that work has sustained me,” Wheat said. “I’m really interested in the student voice — always have been.”