In 2011, Jalen Rose founded the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy charter school in the Northwest side of Detroit to help educate inner-city youth and inspire them to pursue and ultimately obtain a college degree.
With over 400 total students between ninth and twelfth grade, as well as nearly 1,000 alumni from the metro Detroit area, the school has grown and forged success for its students, families and community.
But to continue growing, more space is necessary, and now they have it thanks to the Henry Ford Health Kingswood Hospital.
In January, the psychiatric hospital closed its doors after moving to a new and bigger location. The only thing left was to figure out what to do with the old facility.
That decision was made this week as Henry Ford officials chose to donate it, free of charge, to the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy.
“We’ve long said that it was crucial to us to find a use for the former Kingswood Hospital that contributed to the betterment of our community, and we couldn’t have found a better partner to make those goals a reality than the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy,” said Bob Riney, President and CEO, Henry Ford Health. “It’s a wonderful feeling knowing that generations of future leaders – even future Henry Ford Health nurses or physicians – will walk those halls. This partnership is a testament to our organization’s commitment to our community’s success and well-being.”
The building is over 70,000 square feet and has five floors, perfect space for an expanding school.
“Since I founded the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy in 2011, my singular focus has been to prepare our community’s young people to become leaders in whatever their future holds. As our vision and goals expand, so too does the space we need,” said Rose, a loyal Detroit native. “We are so very grateful to our friends at Henry Ford Health for giving us the perfect place to grow our family and impact. The sky’s the limit for our scholars, who will have the space to learn what they need in high school to succeed in college and careers.”
