Our Vision

Eye On Michigan is a non-profit student journalism program, founded in 2023 by Pulitzer Prize- and Emmy Award-winning journalist M.L. Elrick, to recruit and train the next generation of watchdog reporters. We work with college students on investigative reporting projects and host an annual high school investigative journalism workshop in Detroit.

There continues to be a void when it comes to students pursuing a journalism degree, particularly BIPOC students. Our goal is to diversify investigative reporting and connect students with working journalists, university journalism professors, and college mentors. We’ll continue to motivate kids, especially in underserved communities, to learn about and pursue journalism careers.

We’re already proving this concept works. We’ve produced free, high-impact watchdog journalism and provided it to news organizations throughout the state that can’t afford to do this kind of work.We’re based in East Lansing and Detroit, and are affiliated with The Detroit Free Press and The State News, who publish our work, which is available to every news outlet in Michigan.

Enrollment for our investigative journalism workshop has grown three-fold in three years, showing a strong, ongoing interest in our program among Detroit high school students. As we build on our successes, we’re continually focused on what comes next like expanding our high school workshop program and offering to universities across the state. In fact, we anticipate hiring students from at least three other leading Michigan universities. Our goal is to take this program to every Michigan university and wherever students want to learn how to tell their stories, hold public officials accountable, and deliver the watchdog journalism we deserve.

We’re excited to work with organizations and students who share our vision—starting with you.