Ann Verhey-Henke is the Strategic Director of the Center for Socially Engaged Design (C-SED), and a Lecturer in the Problem Solving Initiative at Michigan Law. In her work with C-SED Ann develops and implements C-SED’s strategy and long-term vision, with an eye towards building partnerships and programming across campus and the broader community. In overseeing the daily operations at C-SED Ann is committed to building a joyful culture fostered by a “how can I help” mindset within the College of Engineering.
Ann has held a variety of positions in her 20+ year career at the University of Michigan, all in service of building initiatives for faculty, staff, and students to work toward a common goal of innovation for societal impact. She founded Innovation in Action, a flagship student innovation program, as well as the Summer Studio, a design studio for teams of interdisciplinary students to focus on cutting-edge faculty research. Ann worked with faculty colleagues at Michigan Public Health to co-create Grant Sprints, an innovative and collaborative approach to idea generation, grant-writing, execution, and dissemination. She also worked with colleagues across UMSI, Law, and Academic Innovation to develop Design Jams, campus-wide opportunities for students to engage with community-stakeholders on a pressing problem.
Prior to joining C-SED, Ann was the Managing Director of Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship and Adjunct Lecturer in Health Management and Policy at Michigan Public Health. Additionally, Ann has served as Director of Foundation Relations for Health, Science and Technology, Interim Director of Development School of Information, Director of Research Administration at the School of Information, and Research Administrator at the Program for Research on Black Americans at the Institute for Social Research. Ann has a BA in Psychology and Religion from Hope College and a MDiv from McCormick Theological Seminary.
Ask Ann about: partnership opportunities, facilitated designed experiences, creative problem solving, socially engaged design process, tools and techniques, faculty innovation, MURAL, student innovation, community engagement, connections to stakeholders, and grant sprints.