As one of the Michigan Learning Communities, the Michigan Community Scholars Program combines the personal attention of a small college with the extensive opportunities of a large research institution. Our program attracts diverse students with a variety of academic interests who share a commitment to community service, social justice, and intercultural understanding. MCSP helps students transition smoothly from high school to college and prepares them for leadership roles on campus and in their future careers. Students and faculty members meet for classes and office hours and participate in student-organized events in West Quad, where MCSP students live, and in the local community. MCSP is sponsored by the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, and University Housing.
What does MCSP do?
- Residential learning community bridges the living and learning aspects of university life
- Students share a commitment to social justice, intercultural understanding, and citizenship in a diverse democracy
- Students lead local, national and international community service initiatives
MCSP Student Profile (on average)
120
Annual MCSP Students
80%
U-M First-year students
20%
Student Leaders (RA, PA, PM)
50/50
White to Student-of-Color ratio
High-Impact Educational Practices
MCSP offers unique educational opportunities for undergraduates, which have been widely recognized for their positive impact on student learning, academic achievement, and student satisfaction with college. These include:
- Close faculty-student interaction: MCSP offers small classes
- Diversity/global learning: MCSP creates a diverse community and provides opportunities for intercultural understanding
- First-year seminars: MCSP offers first year seminars in a variety of disciplines
- Writing-intensive courses: MCSP offers first-year writing courses
- Collaborative projects: students work together on programming and service
- Common intellectual experiences: ALA 102: The Student in the University provides common intellectual experience
- Service-learning and community based learning: students put their learning in practice in service-learning courses and community service projects
Peer Advisors for Community Service: The PACS team leads the work of community engagement and service-learning primarily through direct service with community partners, social justice education, and deep reflection, while fostering mutuality and deeper understanding of structural inequalities.
Intergroup Relations Council: The IRC organizes dialogue-style conversations on a range of topics, educates students about and supports students from various social identity groups, and works to build a strong positive climate for diversity and learning. The IRC fosters intercultural understanding through its dialogues, cultural events, and immersion experiences in the community and on campus helping students to effectively communicate across differences.
Programming Board: Our Programming Board & You (PB&U) cultivates and strengthens our community through social events and gatherings and supports students’ mental health and wellbeing with wellness programs. All first-year students are encouraged to participate in and contribute to the development of PB&U events in order to develop a sense of belonging and connection and to cultivate their own leadership skills.
