LEWIS COLLEGE OF BUSINESS

Violet T. Lewis bought several used typewriters, and started the Lewis Business College in Indiana in the midst of the Great Depression.

Violet T. Lewis bought several used typewriters, and started the Lewis Business College in Indiana in the midst of the Great Depression.

Michigan’s first and only Historically Black College or University is set to reopen next year after closing for nearly a decade.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed two bills on Tuesday to re-establish the state’s first and only Historically Black College or University (HBCU). The former Lewis...

Michigan is now one step closer to reopening the state’s first and only Historically Black College or University (HBCU). Governor Gretchen Whitmer this week signed House Bill 5447 and House Bill 5448 which would re-establish Detroit’s former HBCU, the Lewis College of Business, as the Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design. “I am proud to play a part in helping reopen the Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design in Detroit,” Whitmer said in a press release. For each partner, launching the Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design is part of ongoing initiatives to support the economic future of local and diverse communities. Previously announced to be opening in March 2022, Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design will offer free tuition and programs for Black creatives, designers, engineers, business leaders and more.

Now there’s an effort underway to reopen the Lewis College of Business with a focus on design. Courtesy of Pensole Lewis College of Business and DesignGuestsDr. D’Wayne Edwards is the founder of the Pensole Design Academy and is taking the lead on reopening Lewis College. He says Detroit already has a strong design and art culture, which would only be elevated by reopening the Lewis College of Business. Overall, Edwards says Black designers make up about 5% of the industry, and that reopening the HBCU offers an opportunity to elevate design in the Black community and in the industry. “I think it’s a great opportunity to elevate the importance of design across the country and across the world,” he says.

With many of the more than 100 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) reporting a spike in applications and enrollment this year, plans are now underway to reopen Michigan’s only HBCU. Opening March 2022, Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design in Detroit will offer free tuition and programs for Black creatives, designers, engineers, business leaders and more.

The Lewis College of Business was once the only historically Black college in the state until it closed in 2013.

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) have seen a steady increase in interest and enrollment since 2017, which many have directly correlated with the state...