Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Detroit Institute of Technology at Cody gets a makeover

Volunteers from Dearborn and Detroit high schools renovate Cody High School's Detroit Institute of Technology.

400 volunteers from eight Dearborn and Detroit high schools performed a major renovation of Cody High School's Detroit Institute of Technology for National Arab American Service Day on May 14.

National Arab American Service day is a project of the National Network of Arab American Communities, a national alliance of 25 independent Arab American community-based organizations that develop Arab American nonprofit organizations.

The DIT was in need of a little TLC. Ceiling tiles were falling and striking students, bathroom stalls were missing doors, and the building's exterior and surrounding grounds needed a new look.

click to enlarge

photo credit: National Network of Arab American Communities

Detroit Institute of Technology bathroom stalls without doors before renovation.

click to enlarge

photo credit: National Network of Arab Communities

Ceiling in the Detroit Institute of Technology with missing tiles before renovation.

The Greening of Detroit, an organization whose mission is to create beautiful and green spaces to enhance the quality of life for Detroiters through community engagement education and jobs, partnered with the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services, the largest Arab American nonprofit in the U.S., to renovate DIT and Stein Park.

Volunteers installed new drop ceilings in classrooms, planted community and butterfly gardens, painted outdoor courts, cleaned up debris, cleaned abandoned lots and built new walking paths.

For more information about the National Arab American Service Day click here and to learn more about the National Network for Arab American Communities visit nnaac.org