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THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
November 1-7, 2017
Page A-7
‘Made Man’ Honorable Edward Ewell, Jr. puts citizens first
By Roz Edward Managing Editor
State of Michigan Third Circuit Judicial Court Judge Edward Ewell Jr. has dedicated a major portion of his remarkable career to providing second — and sometimes third and fourth — chances to non-violent offenders seeking to overcome the circumstances of their legal status and become productive members of the Southeast Michigan community. Ewell, a civil division judge, was recently honored as a “Made Man” for demonstrated excellence and commitment to the community, particularly in the area of working with underserved male youth and adults during his 14year tenure in the Third Circuit Judicial Court. The seasoned and steadfast advocate for non-violent offenders headed up the Drug Court which he describes as a deeply gratifying experience. During his time as a presiding judge in the court’s Criminal Division, he recognized that too often, citizens who made a mistake in the past were hindered from building sound futures because “there is more of a punishment element than a rehabilitative element.” “[This is] where people who committed non-violent crimes and were addicted to substances were put through an alternative program which could assist in getting their records expunged,” explained Ewell, adding that expungement is critical for securing gainful employment and building a crime–free future.
Edward Ewell Jr. – Roz Edward photo “We hold them to very disciplined and tough treatment standards where they sometimes had to see me once or twice a week to follow up on their treatment plans and assess their progress … The purpose is sobriety and they can graduate after two years. Usually during that time, they can earn a GED and learn life skills that are available to them to get them back on [sure footing].” Ewell sad there are equally restrictive consequences which may be imposed for violating the conditions of the treat-
ment program. “Usually, that will involve more intense counseling to identify what triggered the relapse. Sometimes I would have them write me a contract or something of that nature to assure adherence to the terms of their treatment plan,” said Ewell. “But if it keeps happening over and over again, there is jail waiting at the end of line for them.” Although Ewell no longer presides over the Third Judicial District’s Judge Court, he is nevertheless intimately in-
volved in working with at-risk and underserved populations throughout his jurisdiction. As chairman of the deacon board at Corinthian Baptist Church and a board member of Sobriety House and Henry Ford Health Systems, Ewell continues to direct citizens in need of services offered to the appropriate resources for help. “Obviously, I can’t order them to church, but I do think there is a spiritual component to be looked at in the journey to wellness and good living,” said Ewell. The former federal prosecutor was appointed to Michigan’s Third Circuit Judicial Court by Gov. Jennifer Grandholm in 2003 to fill the seat left vacant by retired Judge George W. Crockett III. Ewell, a native Detroiter, attended the University of Michigan to earn his undergraduate degree and Wayne State University to receive his law degree. Earlier in his career, the affable advocate worked as a law clerk for Judge Damon Keith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit Court. “Working for Judge Keith was one of the greatest learning experiences of my life. He was tough, but fair, and the experience of working with him has been one of the most gratifying of my career,” says Ewell. Ewell has been rated as an extremely well qualified jurist by the Wolverine Bar Association and an received an outstanding rating from the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan. His current term will expire in January 2019.
City, DESC provide $1M for out of poverty project Michigan Chronicle Reports
Detroit Employment Solutions Corporation and the City of Detroit are seeking partners to provide employment and training services to low-income Detroit residents who are enrolled in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. DESC, in partnership with the City of Detroit and Mayor Mike Duggan’s Workforce Development Board, will provide grants between $50,000 and $100,000 to up to twenty partners to provide training services including literacy skills, soft skills and vocational training, aiming to connect SNAP recipients to in demand jobs. The ultimate goal of the program is to help lift these residents out of poverty – and off of SNAP assistance – by getting them into long-term employment. Employment is one of the
best ways to move people off of nutrition assistance, and there are currently 270,000 people in the City of Detroit who receive food assistance — 160,000 of whom are working age. The grants will leverage and expand access to employment related services for federal food assistance recipients with a goal of helping them secure jobs. “Using these funds to partner with community-based organizations will help hundreds of Detroiters connect to jobs and participate in our city’s recovery,” said Mayor Mike Duggan. Through the program, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) will match up to 50% of any non-federal funding spent to provide employment and training services for people who receive food as-
sistance. Those matched dollars can then be used to provide additional employment services to food assistance participants and then be matched again by USDA. That means a large portion of these funds can be returned and used again to train even more Detroiters. “Every dollar we invest brings in more federal resources to help Detroiters connect with employment. It’s another way we’re working to help lift people out of poverty,” said Executive Director of Workforce Development, Jeff Donofrio. The SNAP Match program (FAE&T Plus) was launched in Detroit and Grand Rapids earlier by the State of Michigan and with support from JP Morgan Chase. Six local organizations (Southwest Solutions, Focus HOPE, Dominican Literacy, Goodwill, JVS and Saint Vin-
cent) are currently participating in the program. The $1 million provided for the grants are from contractor contributions to the city’s Workforce Training Fund, which is made up of compliance fees collected from contractors during the construction of major projects, including Little Caesar’s Arena, Orleans Landing and others. Contractors that did not meet the requirement in a given month under Executive Order 2016-1 to hire 51% of its workforce from within the city of Detroit contributed to the workforce fund, which makes them complaint with the Order. On the Little Caesar’s Arena project, for example, Detroiters worked more than 600,000 hours and arena contractors contributed nearly $3 million to the Workforce Training Fund. Those funds will
be utilized for workforce training for jobs in construction, healthcare, information technology and other high-demand industries in Detroit. “I’m proud of our history-making record accomplishment of working with the city to successfully comply with this executive order,” said Christopher Ilitch, president and CEO of Ilitch Holdings, Inc. “Little Caesars Arena, as the largest-ever project to meet the executive order, has helped thousands of Detroit residents through high-paying jobs and now will help thousands more through the contributions from our contractors. These funds will support the city in providing training to those most in need, building on the more than 800 apprentices who received on-the-job training on our projects already.”
Congratulations to the winners of the Knight Arts Challenge Detroit! Learn more about their big ideas to engage and enrich Detroit through the arts at knightarts.org.
Motor City Street Dance Academy Rob St. Mary Signal-Return Sultan Sharrief / Street Cred Detroit Youth Crew Tiff Massey Tiffany Brown / Urban Arts Collective Danielle Aubert / Wayne State University WDET Young Nation
Pictured: Knight Arts Challenge Winner Heritage Works.
Facing Change: Documenting America Ghana ThinkTank and Central Detroit Christian CDC Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival Heritage Works Sherina Sharpe and Chace Morris / House Aquemini Kisma Jordan Yvette Rock / Live Coal Gallery Mariachi Femenil Detroit Michigan Opera Theatre Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit
Photo by Mark Harris.
a.gen.cy Amelia Duran Arab American National Museum Ayinde Fondren Bryce Detroit Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History / jessica Care moore and Aku Kadogo Cinema Lamont Wayne Ramocan, Allandra Bulger and Dominque Campbell / D.Cipher Detroit Symphony Orchestra Dunya Mikhail