The Albert Kahn Legacy Foundation is proud to announce that its educational partnership with the Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) has been selected by the Historical Society of Michigan to receive one of its 2025 State History Awards. The award recognizes the Foundation’s experiential field trip initiative, Building the Future: Detroit Students’ Day in the City, as the winner in the Education: Educational Programs category.
The Society presents its annual State History Awards to individuals and organizations that made outstanding contributions to the appreciation, collection, preservation and/or promotion of state and local history.
Developed by Foundation board member Barbara Cohn and community artist Gail Rosenbloom Kaplan, the two-day program hosted DPSCD students as they explored Michigan Central Station and NewLab. Through guided tours, firsthand activities and conversations with young professionals from Albert Kahn Associates, the students discovered how architecture, design and technology can intersect across generations.
Highlights included a behind-the-scenes visit to NewLab’s unique innovation hub, a coding workshop with Google Code Next and creative art projects inspired by Kahn’s masterpiece Fisher Building. For the students, the experience sparked interest in careers such as engineering, architecture and preservation. Notably, many participants expressed deeper understanding and appreciation for Detroit’s built environment.
The Foundation is honored to receive this recognition and remains committed to preserving Albert Kahn’s legacy through providing transformative educational experiences for young Detroiters.
