Dr. Elena Ruíz Honored for Community-Led Partnership Supporting Survivors of Gender-Based Violence

For nearly four years, a Michigan State University researcher and two Detroit organizations have worked side by side to expand services for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking in Detroit, securing nearly $900,000 in funding, establishing the first paid staff positions at both organizations, launching new programs, and strengthening community-led support networks across the city.

That work earned Dr. Elena Ruíz, Professor in MSU’s Department of Philosophy and founder and Director of the Research Institute for Structural Change (RISC) at Michigan State University, two 2026 MSU Outreach and Engagement Awards.

Ruíz received the Community Engagement Scholarship Award and the Distinguished Partnership Award for Community-Engaged Research presented at the MSU Outreach and Engagement Awards Ceremony on March 12, 2026, at the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center. Both awards recognize her work through RISC alongside two Detroit-based survivor service organizations: Women Healing Eternally and Transforming (WHEAT) led by Melvenna Fant-Jones, founder and Executive Director of WHEAT, and Sara’s House/Place led by Geneva Jackson, founder and CEO of Sara’s House/Place.

The project, titled Building Capacity for Community-Led Survivor Services and Wraparound Care in Detroit Through Research-Practice Partnerships, uses collaborative, reciprocal methods to address gender-based violence in Detroit. The partnership expands access to public health research for nonprofit service providers while strengthening the capacity of all three organizations to deliver culturally responsive care to survivors.