Hamtramck High School receives fresh coats of paint to inspire learning as part of Colorful Communities project
By Nargis Rahman
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held on August 7 at the Hamtramck High School with PPG, General Motors, and Heart of America, a nonprofit focused on improving classrooms for the Colorful Communities project.
Amjad Farah is the commercial director for automotive coatings at PPG.
He says Colorful Communities is a global initiative to transform spaces such as classrooms.
“We go really focusing on institutions of learning, schools to try to brighten up the space, bring in new energy into the space. We get volunteers, in this case, with partners like GM, to go into the schools, freshen it up and really pour love into the community,” he says.
The groups have been working at Hamtramck High School for three years during the summer school breaks.
Colorful Communities provides volunteers and eco-friendly paint for schools to promote learning and development, through sustainability and the showcase of diversity. The initiative has impacted over 9.2 million people in 50 countries worldwide since 2015.
At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Farah told a group of volunteers that their work makes a difference.
“In three years we’ve accomplished a lot. You guys see the physical changes that you’ve made. What you don’t see is the emotional changes that you’ve made in this community,” he says.
Hamtramck High School Principal Lawrence Stroughter says it’s heartwarming to see volunteers spend time at the high school.
“I’m so appreciative of it, and I thank you for it. I can’t wait for my students to get back to see the freshly painted walls where this old space, or once old and tattered space, is now looking fresh and live and vibrant,” he says.
Stroughter says the freshly painted spaces will make a difference in the students’ lives and inspire them to learn.
“It says to them that they matter, that someone cares enough about us to give their time, their energy, their effort, their money, their dollars. It says to our kids, without saying a word, you matter, and by saying that to them, maybe it motivates them to study a little while longer,” he says.
Jim Larson-Shidler, Hamtramck Interim Superintendent, says he’s appreciative of all the volunteers.
“It’s just amazing. Seeing the partnership. I mean, you know, I’ve got to thank everybody you know, part of America, PPG, GM,” he says.
This year PPG launched its New Paint for a New Start, providing fresh paint to beautifying schools throughout the summer months.
Annie Clough manages Colorful Communities for the U.S. and Canada.
“We try to get into as many educational spaces as possible. So to literally, you know, provide new paint for a new start when the kids are coming back to school,” she says.
She says the goal is to create spaces the students want to be in and take care of.
“Hopefully they’re going to treat the school a little bit better. They’ll start to treat themselves a little bit better. And that’s really, you know, how we get to a better world for everybody,” she says.
PPG has been working in Hamtramck for the past three years, home to diverse immigrant communities in the densest populated city in Michigan.
Farah says he’s happy to be a part of a larger effort to make students feel included and a part of the community.
“For me personally, being a Muslim, being children of immigrants, I wanted the children of this community to know that they’re loved, they’re welcomed, and we want them to spread that where they go,” Farah says.
The current project involves repainting the hallways and creating a new mural this year with the theme “time to change.”
PPG researches the colors that best facilitate a learning environment such as neutral colors, while incorporating the school colors maroon and white.
“If you look in the classrooms, you would see that we actually selected strategic colors that will help facilitate the learning experience right now,” he says. “There are three primary colors, green, blue, and yellow.”
Farah says each year the team works with students to design a mural.
The murals encompass different themes over the years: a science, technology, engineering, arts, and math or STEAM-themed mural; sustainability; and this year’s “time to change” mural.
“When you see this year’s mural, there’s a special little surprise for the community here. We made sure that there was an image of a hijab-wearing woman in that mural, so it could represent the community and the students that are here,” he says.
Farah says the projects are done over two or three days each summer, requiring the work to be spread over the years for completion.
“We’re trying to do it in between summer school and regular school, so it’s a very short period and time window to get it in. So that’s why it’s taken us a couple of years to get it done,” he says.
