The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation has announced a $9 million grant to Michigan State University in support of efforts to expand the presence of MSU's College of Human Medicine and public health program in Flint, Michigan.

The grant will help MSU create an endowment for the school that will be used to boost the number of students trained in Flint as well as recruit top public health researchers to the area. The development of a downtown campus in Flint is part of a larger university initiative to increase the number of medical students in its public health program; establish a new focus on community-based research and healthcare delivery; and strengthen collaboration among local hospitals and institutions of higher education.

The college and public health program will occupy approximately forty thousand square feet of a downtown building that once housed the offices of the Flint Journal. The property, which is undergoing renovation, is owned by Uptown Reinvestment Corporation, a Mott grantee involved in ongoing revitalization efforts in Flint.

"MSU medical students have trained in Flint for many years, and the university has developed a strong working relationship with our local healthcare institutions," said Mott Foundation president and CEO William S. White. "This public health project adds an exciting new dimension to that work. Having strong faculty and researchers based in Flint, and performing community-oriented research could help the area become nationally known as an innovator in the field of public health."