Flint, Michigan has not had a great reputation for quite a while. Recently, a college town initiative has been sweeping across the area between Kettering University, Mott Community College, Baker College and University of Michigan – Flint. In an earlier blog ‘Is Flint Turning into a College Town?’ I talked more about this initiative and what’s going on in Flint.

However, things are starting to change for the city of Flint and the four universities and colleges that consider Flint home. The University of Michigan – Flint reports in The Michigan Times that their enrollment is up 5.5% year-over-year. Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Jack Kay contributes this increase to the aggressive recruitment strategy. Some feel that the increase in enrollment is also a result of the new freshman residence hall. The new residence hall houses 300 out of town, out of state, and international students. Before the residence hall, students had limited options for housing around U of M – Flint. There are a handful of student rentals, such as this well kept rental and this highly-rated rental whcih are both very close to U of M Flint’s campus. What’s up Downtown, an organization dedicated to Downtown Flint, has information about apartments and lofts downtown available for students to rent.

There are a lot of positive changes and I am excited to see them develop right in front of us. If you are a student at U of M Flint, tell us about your housing options. By rating and reviewing your housing on RateMyStudentRental.com you can help contribute to the Ultimate Student Housing Tool and do your part to build the student housing community.

Turning Flint into a college town takes each and every student

At Kettering University’s June 2008 Commencement ceremony (yes, all of the RateMyStudentRental team was there!) the students, proud parents, and faculty heard the announcement that Third Avenue was going to now be known as University Avenue! That is definitely a step in the right direction for the depressed town we know as Flint, MI.

Flint, MI is home to several Universities and Colleges including: Kettering University (formerly General Motors Institute) , University of Michigan - Flint , Mott Community College ,and Baker College . But, at the same time, while thousands of students support the local economy, Flint’s educational institutions are forgotten and a negative reputation is still being supported by the unemployment, boarded up buildings, and bizarre crimes.

Many are sick of the bad news and have finally stepped up to do something positive. A group of inspired students and professionals have joined efforts and have put together a proactive group called the Flint College Town Initiative. From the Kettering Chapter’s Facebook group , the group states that :

“The Flint College Town Initiative is a joint effort between Kettering University, University of Michigan- Flint, Mott Community College, Baker College, and the Flint Institute of Arts to change Flint’s face from an old industrial town to a newer and younger College Town. There are currently over 30,000 students who attend higher level education institutions within the City of Flint, yet we (as students) are the most under served population. It is our goal to change that! The College Town Student Advisory Committee meets on a monthly basis to focus our efforts to create a sense of community among all college students in Flint. This group is intended to be Kettering University’s official student voice for those meetings.

But, why should we care if Flint turns into a college town? Most of us, as students, will probably be out of the city before anything gets done! Below are just a few reasons why we should all contribute the the movement of giving Flint a college town mentality:

• Your College’s reputation is on the line! If you college or university drops in enrollment and programs have to get cut for the institution to survive then the reputation of the university may decline and the name on your degree might loose it’s power.
• Future students will appreciate the change! Your little sister could be coming to one of Flint’s colleges and something might be changed by the time she gets here. You want her to be safe and have a great experience, don’t you?
• Improved local economy. Businesses in Flint are already starting to give their store’s make-overs and new businesses are slowly coming in. This will only happen faster. Students will be provided better service and offered better products as a result.
• Campus and community beautification. If we all get in the college town mood and start expecting to live like we were in a college town we would see cleaner grounds, improved buildings and better student housing.

You can start to join these other students and join their Facebook group or ask around campus of how you can get involved. Sounds like the Flint College Town Initiative group is coming up with some big events and we’ll do our best to keep you posted on them.

When we have reached the point that Flint is a college town, students will have things to do, places to go and reasons to come to Flint in the first place! Do your part, serve the community, and watch it give back!