Tag Archives: Partnership

A local university and construction institute partner to address skilled trades needs

3-bottom, Area Education, Citizen Journalism, City of Kentwood, City of Wyoming, Education, Going Local, Kent County, Local Business, Our Cities, West Michigan, , , , , ,
A unique alliance offers local students an opportunity to earn a college degree while gaining nationally recognized trade certifications (Courtesy photo)


By Deborah Reed

WKTV Managing Editor

deborah@wktv.org


To address the growing need for skilled tradespeople, Grace Christian University (GCU) and the West Michigan Construction Institute (WMCI) have formally signed a partnership agreement that allows students to earn a college degree while gaining nationally recognized trade certifications.

Located just 2.6 miles apart, GCU and WMCI offer a seamless blend of programs that empower students to excel academically, professionally and in some cases, spiritually. Sixteen students will begin the program in the fall semester of 2025.

Tuition is billed separately. GCU students pay standard tuition rates for courses at the university. WMCI’s tuition is $2,000 per semester, regardless of program.

Both institutions are committed to helping students maximize financial aid opportunities, including federal grants, community funding and unique partnering scholarships with local construction-related companies.


GCU President Ken Kemper (left) and WMCI President Jen Schottke shake hands to commemorate the new partnership between their organizations (Courtesy, GCU / WMCI)

The best of both worlds

For students, this means the best of both worlds. They can grow in their faith, develop marketable skills and graduate with the tools to make an eternal impact in their communities. This partnership allows employers to hire well-rounded, highly qualified candidates ready to lead in the construction industry.

“In today’s evolving job market, many students are seeking alternatives to traditional four-year degrees,” said Jen Schottke, President of WMCI. “At the same time, employers in industries like construction are searching for candidates with both technical skills and leadership capabilities.

“We believe this partnership will blend the two by allowing students to earn a college degree while gaining nationally recognized trade certifications.”

Dr. Ken Kemper, GCU President, echoed Schottke’s sentiments: “We are creating an innovative educational pathway that bridges Bible-centered higher education and hands-on trade skills.

“We think this partnership is a game-changer for students seeking to combine their passion for skilled trades with the transformative impact of a biblical education.”


Michigan employers are seeking talent to fill jobs in healthcare, information technology, advanced manufacturing, construction and automotive (Courtesy, pxhere.com)

Filling a vital gap

Skilled Trade careers often require less schooling and debt than a four-year degree – and offer a wide range of opportunities for students.

Michigan employers, more than ever before, are seeking talent to fill jobs in fields such as healthcare, information technology, advanced manufacturing, construction and automotive.

“A sizable professional trades shortage exists in Michigan and is expected to continue through 2030,” stated the Pure Michigan Talent Connect website.

“Professional trades will account for more than 520,000 jobs in the Michigan economy, and approximately 45,000 new job openings are expected annually in the state during that time.”

The collaboration between GCU and WMCI offers flexible options tailored to students’ academic and career goals that can help fill that skilled tradesmen gap.

Choose what works for you…

Options offered through the recent partnership between GCU and WMCI include:

Flexible options tailored to students’ academic and career goals will be offered (Courtesy, DU)
  • Integrated Bachelor’s Program
    WMCI certifications transfer seamlessly as block credits toward Grace’s on-campus or online bachelor’s programs. Students can complete their degree while growing professionally in their chosen trade.
  • Dual Enrollment
    Students can enroll in prescribed courses at Grace while earning certifications in carpentry, drywall, or other construction trades through WMCI. This pathway is ideal for high school graduates eager to start working while pursuing a degree.
  • Transfer Pathway
    Students who complete a two-year associate degree at Grace can transfer to WMCI to pursue trade certifications. This approach provides a strong academic foundation, allowing students to specialize in construction.

Top-tier resources

Students in this partnership benefit from top-tier resources at both institutions. From state-of-the-art labs to personalized career support, the programs are designed to equip students with everything they need to succeed.

At GCU, students gain access to a biblically centered education that shapes their worldview and prepares them for leadership. Programs emphasize personal growth, community service and a commitment to Christ’s teachings.


Kemper (left) and Schottke will provide top-tier resources for students at both institutions (Courtesy, GCU / WMCI)


At WMCI, students experience facilities that are among the best in the industry. Four interactive learning labs provide hands-on training in trades like carpentry, plumbing and sprinkler fitting. Nine modern classrooms facilitate in-depth learning and discussions, and a climate-controlled sandpit allows students to practice concrete and plumbing skills during winter months.

All WMCI programs are accredited by the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER), ensuring students graduate with nationally recognized certifications. These portable credentials allow students to transfer credits to other institutions or relocate without starting over.

Creating unique opportunities

Both organization leaders note that this endeavor will create a unique opportunity for aspiring entrepreneurs.

(Courtesy photo)

“Many students enter WMCI programs with the dream of owning their own construction company. Through this collaboration, students gain the technical skills needed to master their trade at WMCI while studying business principles at Grace Christian University,” noted Schottke.

“Grace’s business courses cover essential topics like financial management, marketing and leadership. These skills complement WMCI’s trade training, enabling graduates to launch and grow successful businesses grounded in Christian values,” added Kemper.

The GCU and WMCI partnership plans to expand to include additional enrollment periods, new courses and expanded dual-enrollment pathways for high school students.

Local construction firms could also reap benefits from this partnership.

“The partnership between Grace Christian University and West Michigan Construction Institute is an excellent way to prepare and equip people in our community to follow God’s calling to work in the construction industry,” said Craig Baker, Owner of First Companies.

“We are very thankful for this partnership and how it will improve the workforce in West Michigan.”

BHSH System and GVSU join forces to offer new nursing scholar program

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By WKTV Staff
joanne@wktv.org

Grand Valley State University and BCSH Systems, which includes Spectrum Health, have partner to offer a Nurse Scholar program. (Supplied)

Two of Michigan’s largest institutions have created what they hope will be a model for the nation in addressing the severe talent shortage in nursing. Leaders from BHSH System and Grand Valley State University have announced a partnership with the creation of the BHSH Spectrum Health West Michigan Nurse Scholar program. The partnership is designed to increase the nursing talent pipeline by taking away financial barriers to college and smoothing the educational path to employment at BHSH Spectrum Health West Michigan.

 

The health system is investing more than $19 million to provide infrastructure, start-up costs and resources for increased clinical placements, training and other support for students in the program. This includes grant dollars for all BHSH Spectrum Health West Michigan Nurse Scholars. Grand Valley will increase infrastructure support for students in the areas of financial aid, curriculum enhancements, technology and equipment, student support services, simulation enhancements and clinical experiences.

The BHSH Spectrum Health West Michigan Nurse Scholar partnership will create an opportunity for nearly 500 additional students to pursue a career in nursing over the next six years. The university will assume all future infrastructure costs and maintain a permanent increase in the number of students admitted to its Kirkhof College of Nursing, creating a lasting impact for our community, state and region. More than 92 percent of all GVSU graduates within the health professions stay in Michigan.

              

A federal workforce analysis shows Michigan currently has a nursing shortage for its population, and that shortage has been exacerbated by the burnout and stress caused by the pandemic. Leaders at BHSH System and GVSU say the creative solution they’ve designed will build a stronger talent pipeline, and the partnership can serve as a model and inspiration to enterprises, universities, communities and governments to solve the nation’s talent shortages.

“We challenged ourselves to be bold: What can we do, together with GVSU, to permanently increase access to education, strengthen nursing education programs and invest in talented, compassionate people who want to become nurses?” said Tina Freese Decker, president and CEO, BHSH System (formerly Beaumont Health and Spectrum Health). “Our teams delivered a joint, innovative proposal that expands opportunities for up to 500 future nurses and can be the model for others to emulate. We are incredibly excited about the nurse scholar program and the impact this will have in health care, for individual learners and for future generations.”

Grand Valley President Philomena V. Mantella said the agreement is a perfect example of how educational institutions and enterprises can partner quickly and efficiently to address talent shortages.

“These talent gaps hold us back or put us at risk,” said Mantella. “We have many dedicated and talented students who want to pursue nursing, but we needed the creativity and support of our partners at BHSH System to make the expansion of nursing possible and affordable for more talented and diverse students. This program is a huge leap forward and a model for other high need fields. I applaud the ingenuity and willingness of our teams to bring it to fruition.”

                                                                                                      

After all approvals and accreditation, the BHSH Spectrum Health West Michigan Nurse Scholar program will be in place by January 2023. 

Governments and Nonprofits: New Partnerships or Paradigm Shifts?

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By K. Caldwell, Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State University

 

As priorities of government have shifted away from directly providing services and programs, there has also been an explicit and implied expectations shift between government and philanthropy (defined here to include donors, volunteers, charities, and foundations). The partnerships between governments and philanthropy have evolved from working on similar issues independently, to working together or in place of one another. Consequently, there are new challenges in terms of roles, responsibilities, resources, and repercussions that merit exploration.

 

In recent years, philanthropy has undeniably taken on a larger role in meeting community needs and serving as an economic engine. Nearly one-third of nonprofit sector revenues come from public sources to fund vital services (McKeever, 2015). And one in ten workers in America are employed by a nonprofit organization. That workforce is growing in response to society’s demands (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016).

 

What is more fascinating (and perhaps alarming), is the many ways, in which philanthropy is now temporarily substituting for, or flat out supplanting, the traditional roles of government. A few examples from Michigan present very different, yet similarly complicated examples of sector role conflation.

 

Kalamazoo, Mich. launched the Kalamazoo Promise — an effort to provide higher education opportunities for all public-school graduates — with the support of five anonymous donors (Bartik, 2015). In that same community, two other donors have committed their wealth toward the creation of a new nonprofit, the Foundation for Excellence, which provides funds to maintain a stable property tax rate and structure and funds innovative community solutions as defined by city government.

 

Flint, Mich. experienced one of the nation’s greatest infrastructure failures when the city switched its public water source to the Flint River without proper anticorrosion treatment, thereby damaging the plumbing system, and leaching lead into the drinking water (Bosman, 2016). Foundations and nonprofits stepped up as first responders, delivering bottled water and water filters to residents. A group of foundations ultimately
stepped in to underwrite the costs of switching the water back to the original source, and the community foundation launched a response fund to provide for the long-term nutrition and education needs of the children affected by the increased lead levels (French, 2016).

 

When Detroit, Mich. filed for bankruptcy in July 2013, its debt was estimated at $18-$20 billion. Several foundations pooled their resources to help ensure that pensioners could survive on their fixed incomes, while the Detroit Institute of Arts (which was otherwise headed for the auction block) was reinvented as a nonprofit with a solid financial footing. A new fund was developed through the local community foundation to disperse settlement funds to various individuals and organizations involved in the settlement. (Ferris, 2017)

 

If paradigm shifts such as these are a good thing for the sector and demonstrate the versatility and leadership philanthropy can demonstrate, there are important questions to address as these new “muscles” are exercised. Can philanthropy’s assets substitute for those provided through the public sector? If so, are the sector’s current fiscal and operational systems ready to deal with the change? What are the accountability and transparency responsibilities of philanthropy if it is asked to step into leadership roles traditionally occupied by elected bodies? It is important to be cognizant of the challenges that unclear boundaries and unrealistic expectations can bring to such paradigm shifts.

 

Reprinted with permission from Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy at Grand Valley State University.

Kelloggsville, KDL join together to open high school library to the entire community

3-bottom, City of Kentwood, City of Wyoming, , , , , ,

By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma

joanne@wktv.org

 

The new library is scheduled to open Jan. 9 with an official open house as part of the Jan. 17 Kelloggsville Rocket Family Night. The event is from 5:30-7 p.m. at the high school, 4787 S. Division Ave.

 

The state-of-the-art library was part of a $33.9 million bond proposal passed by Kelloggsville voters in February 2015. About $29 million of the bond proposal was dedicated to the high school with major changes that included a redesigned entrance on Division Avenue along with a new gym and an indoor track facility. The goal, according to Kelloggsville Director of Curriculum Tammy Savage, was to have all these facilities open to the public.

 

A room with a view: the new state-of-the-art library at Kelloggsville High School.

“Our community members don’ have access to a library in walking distance,” Savage said of the decision to have the library open to the community. “It is over four miles to the Wyoming branch and over five miles to the Kentwood branch.”

 

Kelloggsvile officials approached KDL and brought library representatives in for a tour of the new library facility.

 

“At KDL, we are always looking for ways to make library services easier and more convenient for the residents of Kent County and we know that transportation can be a barrier for the folks in Kelloggsville, especially the young children who have parents who work all day,” said  KDL Director of Branch Services and Operations Lindsey Dorfman. “So we are really happy to bring KDL services right to their backyard.”

 

KDL has 18 partnerships with various local municipalities including the cities of Kentwood and Wyoming. The partnership with Kelloggsville will be similar in that Kelloggsville owns the building and will be responsible for the care and maintenance of the facility just like Wyoming and Kentwood. KDL operates the library services within the buildings such as the staffing, collections and technology. Dorfman said the unique element to the Kelloggsville/KDL partnership is that the staffing with a be a team effort between the two organizations.

 

There are a lots of places for students to study and collaborate.

With the focus being on equity of service, according to Dorfman, the collection at the new Kelloggsville branch will be similar to what other KDL branches offer. It will have a range of books from preschool to adult along with the Beyond Books Collection that includes iPads, Go Pro cameras and even ukuleles. Also KDL programming such as KDLville Play and KDL Lab Spaces will be available. Both students and community members also will be able to reserve materials from other KDL branches that can be delivered to the Kelloggsville branch along with access to the Michigan Electronic Library (MEL), which allows patrons to order books from all over the state and have them delivered to their neighborhood library.

 

Savage said the Steelcase Foundation gave the district a $250,000 grant for seed money to get the community library project started. And while the library has not officially opened, response to the remodeled high school and the library facility has been overwhelmingly positive, Savage said.

 

“We had an open house in early October and we had over 200 people here for the open house at the high school and people were very excited about what they saw here,” Savage said. “Again, this is a fabulous space that [has been] renovated and then to have things like this, a 6,500-square-foot media center be here and know it is going to be open to the community…our community is very impressed and very happy about this.”

 

The KDL collection will include materials for all ages, pre-school to adult.

The Kelloggsville Library, which has its own entrance on the north side of the high school or to the right of the high school’s main entrance, will have community hours that will include three evenings, 3-8 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and every other Saturday from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Additional hours will be added during the summertime.

 

For more information on programs and hours at the new KDL Kelloggsvile Branch, visit the branch’s page at kdl.org/locations/kelloggsville-branch.

 

Metro Health and U-M Health System take next step towards partnership

3-bottom, City of Wyoming, Community Health, Non-Profits, , ,

metro health buildingBack in June, Metro Health announced its plans to join with the University of Michigan Health System. Three months later, the partnership is now one step closer with a definitive affiliation approved by both the board of directors of Metro Health Corporation and the Regents of the University of Michigan.

 

“We are excited about this relationship that should continually improve the care we can – together – provide residents of the state of Michigan. Metro Health will be essential to helping us move groundbreaking research and discovery from bench to bedside,” said Marxchall Runge, M.D., Ph. D., executive vice president of medical affairs, dean of the U-M Medical School and CEO of the U-M Health System.

 

Metro Health and U-M Health System will create a clinical care network that builds upon the strengths of the world-class U-M academic medical center and a very successful community-based health system. Together the two organizations will be able to collaborate on new and improved clinical care models across the system, enhancing patient access to physicians and other care providers at both organizations.

 

The partnership will focus on bringing increased health care innovation to West Michigan and Beyond.

 

“We are very excited about the opportunities we will have, together, to advance the boundaries of clinical practice and medical science through research discoveries and disseminating knowledge,” added Michael Faas, chief executive officer of Metro Health.

 

Along with innovation, the affiliation will enable Metro Health to further expand its primary care and speciality services, as well as enhance its use of complex medial technology.

 

Metro Health and the University of Michigan have no current plans for a satellite medical campus like the partnership with Spectrum Health and Michigan State University.

 

The deal is expected to be completed by year end, pending final regulatory approvals and completion of the closing process.