Dr. Darienne Hudson Named Black History Month Game Changers Honoree

DETROIT – Dr. Darienne Hudson considers herself a lifelong learner and service member to her community. Raised by parents who grew up in the Jim Crow era of the south, Hudson recognizes that rights like education were not always guaranteed for Black people.

“For me, it’s been very important not only to serve as an educator and a leader, but to serve in the communities that are predominantly black and give back to the community that helped me become who I am,” Hudson said.

Since she was 6 years old, Hudson wanted to be a teacher. She was educated in public schools in Virginia and Pittsburgh before moving to Michigan for graduate school.

“I feel that I had access to anything and everything that I wanted to do,” Hudson said. “I went to Spelman (College) and I majored in education. I realized very quickly that was not the case for children in many settings and I wanted to be able to serve in communities where they weren’t as well-resourced and try to provide the type of world class education that I experienced.”

The Detroit Public School system seemed like the perfect fit for Hudson’s vision of helping children and giving them the type of education she received growing up. She earned a master’s degree from Harvard University and another from the University of Michigan and stayed in Detroit, teaching for many years.

“I loved every minute of being a teacher here,” Hudson said. “I learned so much and it really was the catalyst for the rest of my career in advocating for children in urban settings.”

Now, as the President and CEO of the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, Hudson is continuing to advocate for children and families in metro Detroit.

Hudson is the fourth 2024 honoree of the Game Changers series, which celebrates community members making a profound difference for youth in Detroit. In partnership with Comerica Bank, the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers will recognize one Game Changers honoree per week during select months throughout the year to receive a $1,000 grant dedicated to the charity of their choice.

“As a celebrated leader bringing together incredible public-private partnerships to drive collective impact, we are thrilled to honor Dr. Hudson as a Game Changers recipient,” Ilitch Sports + Entertainment Director of Community Impact Kevin Brown said. “Dr. Hudson and her team at United Way for Southeastern Michigan are delivering intentional, collaborative solutions every day to measurably improve the lives of children and families in our community.”

Hudson said despite not being raised in Detroit, she feels deeply connected to this community and is thrilled to contribute to its improvement.

“I am not a Detroit native, but I am Detroit made,” Hudson said. “Any opportunity that I get to be able to pour into the children and the families in the community, and the way I felt that I was nurtured when I was here, is truly special.”

Hudson said she wants to thank all the children she’s had an opportunity to teach, work with and help along the way, as she said she learned a lot from them, too.

“They were also part of my village. I learned so much from them that it was really a privilege to start as their teacher and as their cheerleading coach and to be able to watch them continue to evolve and do wonderful things,” Hudson said. “I just want to encourage them to continue to do that. We are counting on them as the next generation of leaders to take care of their community.”

To learn more about United Way of Southeastern Michigan, visit unitedwaysem.org.