Detroit Is Ready to Invest in You
The City of Detroit has programs that can help with higher education, criminal record expungement and so much more
Detroit for Life: The City that has your back.
Did you know there are funds available for City residents who want to return to school, embark on a new career or to help fund their child’s higher education? Need help funding a neighborhood beautification project or assistance with cleaning up a criminal record so you can take advantage of a clean start? The City of Detroit programs offer all of this and more.
The programs aim to transform Detroit into a place where the future is bright for everyone who calls the City home. Every resident is invited to get involved. These programs are for you, all because you live in Detroit.
Does your neighborhood need a glow-up?
The Neighborhood Beautification Program will help you and your neighbors create spaces by transforming vacant lots into gardens, play areas and attractive green spaces. Through a partnership with the Wayne Metropolitan Community Action Agency, Detroit offers grants to neighborhood associations, block clubs and non-profit organizations that want to create beauty by cleaning up abandoned lots or embarking on projects like community gardens and public space improvements. Neighborhood Beautification Program grants range from $500 to $15,000. While the 2024 application is closed, it’s never too early to start planning for next year’s application. Read more at waynemetro.org/neighborhood-beautification-grant.
You can become a part of the major facelift Detroit has been undergoing for the past several years through the City’s Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship (ACE). ACE is working with Detroit for Life to help City residents build new spaces where families and friends can gather and engage in art in various ways. Connect with ACE at detroitmi.gov/ace to learn about partnering with the City to create unique, inviting neighborhoods.
Detroit’s free expungement program can help you get the fresh start you deserve.
Detroit’s Project Clean Slate can help you expunge your criminal record. Detroit is a City that not only believes in second chances but one that invests in people who deserve them. Criminal record expungement — the process of erasing criminal convictions from someone’s record — can make a world of difference for someone trying to find employment, housing or access to educational funding like federal financial aid.
Expungement is a particularly critical need among the LGBTQ+ community, which is overrepresented throughout the criminal justice system. According to University of Wisconsin research published in 2022, LGBTQ+ people are more than twice as likely to be arrested compared to straight people and three times more likely to be incarcerated than the general population. The numbers are even worse for LGBTQ+ people of color for a host of systemic reasons. The City of Detroit reports that 215,000 residents have criminal records and that approximately 168,000 people are eligible for expungement.
Project Clean Slate has assisted more than 10,000 Detroit residents since 2021, with participants seeing an average wage increase of 23% after a single year. Learn about the program at detroitmi.gov/pcs.
Get a leg up on your career (and get paid to learn).
If you feel stuck in a job that feels less like a career and more like just a paycheck, check out the City’s Skills for Life program, which pays you while you work and study for your GED or job certification. Skills for Life can also connect you to career training in fields like truck driving (CDL), heavy equipment operation, information technology, skilled trades and healthcare roles. Starting pay ranges are $17-$25 per hour. Learn more at detroitatwork.com/skillsforlife.
Send your kids (or you) to college — tuition-free!
Detroit Promise, a program funded by the Michigan Education Excellence Foundation, ensures all eligible high school and college students who live in Detroit have a path to a tuition-free associate degree, bachelor’s degree or technical certificate at academic institutions across the state. After Pell Grants and other financial aid awards are applied, Detroit Promise kicks in to cover the rest, putting long-term goals within reach for thousands of Detroiters who may not otherwise be able to fund their post-secondary education. This incredible program has helped more than 6,000 Detroit residents since it was established in 2011. Find out more at detroitpromise.com.
Want to tell your landlord goodbye?
Detroit’s Down Payment Assistance Program will help you buy a house. The program helps residents secure down payment assistance of up to $25,000, putting home ownership within reach for individuals who cannot afford this initial investment. In some cases, Detroit can also help residents facing foreclosure or homelessness. Go to detroitpa.org to learn more.
Trying to start a business?
Detroit loves entrepreneurs! Motor City Match helps residents create new, long-lasting businesses and assists established business owners in expanding their operations. This program offers personalized support tailored to meet the needs of wide-ranging businesses at any development stage. So far, the program has helped more than 2,000 business owners through more than $18 million in grants.
While you’re exploring entrepreneurship opportunities, don’t sleep on the Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce, which can keep you connected to Detroit’s thriving LGBTQ-owned business community. President Kevin Heard told Pride Source earlier this year that the Chamber can help business owners make and maintain those all-important connections. “We connect people to others who respect and understand and who are often a part of the community,” he said.
Invest in yourself and your community — get started today. That’s why we’re Detroit for Life!
The City has taken special care to provide easy access to Detroit residents to the resources you’re looking for. Visit detroitmi.gov/detroitforlife to get started. You’ll find links to each opportunity, contact information and all kinds of inspiration from people just like you who have taken advantage of all the programs Detroit has to offer.
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