SMART Team / Update

July 18, 2003

Mr. Vadim Saratovtsev

Deloitte & Touche

Dear Vadim,

Pontiac, Michigan has been a center for the struggle for equality for generations. The Underground Railroad that led legions of southern slaves to freedom in Canada ran just 12 miles east of the Pontiac Court House. But freedom and equality have not been as forthcoming for the residents of Pontiac. Located in Oakland County, the third richest county in the United States, Pontiac’s diverse population of 64,000 people includes 40% below the poverty level. Poverty’s usual cohorts – crime, substance abuse, spousal and child abuse, depression, hopelessness and a high drop-out rate in the schools affect the educational levels for all Pontiac residents and perpetuate a vicious cycle. Add to these statistics the reality that at no time in history has the widening gap between the affluent and the poor been so obvious – the majority of well paying jobs in the present and the future are tied to computer literacy and navigation of the Internet, but it takes so much money to have a home computer, to get access to the Net and to take computer classes. This disparity is creating the "digital divide" which President Clinton challenged Congress to eliminate in his State of the Union Address during his Presidency.

Yet, one third of the population of Pontiac is under 18 years of age and offers a vast talent bank for the future of society. One group of people who are addressing these issues in Pontiac is the group associated with the McMath-Hulbert Solar Observatory in Lake Angelus, Michigan, a community bordering Pontiac. Jim Ross, the Director is a true visionary who is determined to make a positive difference in the Pontiac community and beyond. He is spearheading the planning of the Pontiac SMART Community Complex. SMART stands for Science, Math, Art, Reading and Technology. The campus will be developed on the south side of downtown Pontiac with a historic Albert Kahn building at 175 S. Saginaw St. as its center. The owner of the building, Leon Jukowski, is the Deputy Mayor of Pontiac, and is also involved with and excited about the project.

The components for the complex have been suggested by the youth of Pontiac. The goal of the project is to empower the youth of Pontiac while educating them in a non-traditional atmosphere. The SMART Community Complex brochure states "We are on the threshold of leaving behind the old way of teaching – the way based on right/wrong, competition, shame, fear, punishment, rescuing, judgment, demand of compliance, and obedience to outside authority. We are entering a new age – a time of awakening founded on trust, inner knowing, allowing, choice, personal empowerment, responsibility, love and unity." The complex will be available for youth and their families daily and will offer after-school programs. There will also be links to the Oakland County Schools via video-conferencing and the Web site.

The complex will also be connected by a nature trail to Pontiac Nature Center, a proposed nature center in wetlands just west of downtown Pontiac. The nature trail is being constructed on an unused Canadian National Railroad bed that runs across the city. This railroad bed was purchased by the city in 2001 with a grant form the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund.

A popular adage regarding the education and empowerment of people is, "If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish you feed him for a lifetime." At McMath-Hulbert, we strongly believe empowerment walks hand in hand with vocational strengthening for all people.

I am enclosing brochures from our organization describing the SMART project, the McGrath-Hulbert Observatory and the Pontiac Nature Center. Please contact me for further information. Thank you for your attention.


Sincerely,

Anne Jantz