Spartans reflect on Spartan Bus Tour’s Detroit trip
On May 5-6, 70 Michigan State University faculty members and administrators set out on the second Spartan Bus Tour, this time focused on learning about MSU’s research, outreach and partnership efforts in Detroit — and learning a little bit about the city’s culture and communities in the process.
Two days, 14 stops and 254 miles later, these Spartans found a new sense of community and connection — both with each other and with the Motor City. Here’s what participants had to say about their experience on the Spartan Bus Tour: Detroit Local Loop.
Kevin McGraw, chairperson and professor, College of Natural Science
“What a fantastic trip it was! I’m very grateful for the opportunity to connect on the road for two days with so many Spartan colleagues and together learn about MSU’s current collaborations and potential opportunities across metropolitan Detroit. With that privilege comes great responsibility and, as my research focuses on the urban ecology of birds, I’m inspired to do more to improve the health and biodiversity of wild bird populations in our Michigan cities.”
LeConté Dill, associate professor, College of Arts and Letters
“We joined an impeccably planned, organized and curated — down to the minute — journey.
“At the Zekelman Holcauset Center, we were immediately confronted with hard truths of state-sanctioned violence, discrimination and xenophobia. We were confronted with the knowing that, in many ways, this is still our present day. We were invited to remember resistance and coping. There, we saw the Anne Frank sapling, which symbolizes hope and rebirth. Like that tree, immediately afterwards, we were invited to the land at the Detroit Partnership for Food Learning and Innovation. For grounding, restoration, connection, neighborliness and nourishment, we were invited to form a circle. Some of us might do this in our classes or might consider doing so now.
“We experienced art in expected and unexpected spaces, across age and abilities.
“We saw vacant lots, and I invite us to remember the intentional, historic disinvestment in the city. We saw redevelopment, but we must look beyond the new and shiny and consider whether or not the development is equitable.
“We saw that working in groups starts with self-introspection about our own communication, and then communicating and documenting how we tick, how we’re triggered, how we might want to be called in, how we want to agree to engage in collective work.
“We were in the Motor City — we saw where and how the motors are made, and some of us got caffeine for our own motors.
“Then we went to the hallowed ground of Hitsville U.S.A. My ‘cousin’ Stevland Morris, or Stevie Wonder, would call it ‘Higher Ground.’ In that ‘Village Ghetto Land’ of Detroit, ‘You and I’ got to learn about ‘Another Star’ who was ‘Living for the City,’ whose ‘Fingertips’ tickled ‘Ebony and Ivory’ keys, and many of us left ‘Overjoyed.’”
Ed Timke, assistant professor, College of Communication Arts and Sciences
“The bus tour showed me the perseverance and grit we have as Michiganders and Spartans to help others and the world solve some of the most pressing problems of our time.
“I saw how MSU’s reach spreads far and wide across the state in ways I never anticipated — and in areas as diverse as cutting-edge medical care to urban farming to the arts.
“As someone who first came to MSU as an undergraduate over 20 years ago, drawn to both its vast resources and its small, tight-knit communities, I was reminded of the power of our land-grant mission to solve problems together. The bus tour also reminded me why I came back to MSU — it’s a university that values community engagement, public service and opportunity for all.”
Charles “Chaz” Hong, MSU Research Foundation Professor, College of Human Medicine
“Day two of the Spartan Bus Tour began by visiting MSU Detroit Center/Community Music School. For me, it was a personal journey because I attended elementary school just a block away from the MSU Detroit Center. It was wonderful to see all the things that MSU Detroit Center was doing for my old community, especially the music school. We then moved a few miles north, where we participated in the Henry Ford Health + MSU Health Sciences research building construction site. This stop was also personal for me because I lived on Second Avenue a mile south of the new building going up. It was so good to see that Henry Ford Health stayed in Detroit when so many others moved out, and even better to see MSU invest in my stomping grounds.
“But perhaps more extraordinary was what was happening in the Spartan Bus Tour itself. I met faculty and administrators from all aspects of MSU. That breadth and depth of talent and expertise in that bus is perhaps the most amazing, and humbling, aspect of the tour. I became friends with Spartans from different colleges, different campuses, different roles and different fields, some of which I didn’t even know about. For a cardiologist, whose usual notion of ‘diverse opinion’ is talking to a cardiac surgeon, I was awe struck by the diversity and awesomeness inside that bus! We are as diverse and awesome as the communities we serve. MSU is a true UNIVERSE-ity!”
Mengyan Ma, assistant professor, College of Communication Arts and Sciences
“I earned my master’s degree (2015) and doctoral degree (2021) from Michigan State University and returned to teach here in fall 2024. While I have witnessed the incredible impact of leaders, educators, scholars and staff on our students through teaching, research and service, primarily within my college, this bus tour was my first opportunity to see how our university, as a united team, contributes to, supports and collaborates with Detroit communities.
“Through this experience, I realized the potential of the direct impact I could make on the community, even as an early career, female, first-generation immigrant faculty member. I was deeply moved by the enduring passion and enthusiasm of senior faculty and staff who have dedicated decades, or even their entire lives, to their work. I never imagined I would have the opportunity to be so close to our university president and distinguished scholars who genuinely listened to me, despite being new and early in my career. Collaborative projects are definitely on the horizon! We discussed ideas and plans with faculty members from various colleges and have already scheduled a project meeting with a stakeholder. I am genuinely excited to see where these conversations lead.”
Read all the reflections in MSU Today.
