Howard Krugel

248-890-9903

hkrugel@dietzsports.com

June 20, 2019

Livonia, MI (June 19, 2019) – Schoolcraft College is proud to announce an expanding partnership with Saint Joseph Mercy Health System with the construction of the St. Joe’s Mercy Elite Sports Center located on Schoolcraft College campus. The new St. Joe’s Mercy Elite Sports Center will be the western suburban home of the Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy, Detroit’s premier volleyball development academy, featuring 74,000 square feet of multi-purpose space. The addition of Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy to the SC Elite Program brand expands the partners to Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, MercyElite Sports Performance, the Wolves and Hawks Soccer Club and the Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy. SC Elite is dedicated to the growth of youth and adult sports on the I-275 corridor of metropolitan Detroit.

The St. Joe’s Mercy Elite Sports Center will house eight volleyball courts, a running track, soccer training space, and fitness and rehabilitation space. Construction (groundbreaking) will begin in August 2019 with completion and a grand opening event in the spring of 2020.

Schoolcraft College will be deploying a state-of-the art Fitness Laboratory, classroom space and faculty offices for Schoolcraft College’s Associate Degree program in Fitness Leadership. The Fitness Lab is designed to train students in performance testing, applied exercise physiology and other skills. The Fitness Leadership program will take advantage of Mercy Elite’s presence on campus in the support of academic programs, job shadowing and internship opportunities. Schoolcraft College will be expanding both youth and adult continuing education programs within this facility. Schoolcraft students, athletes, faculty and staff will also have expanded access to wellness and fitness components provided.

Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy will use the St. Joe’s Mercy Elite Sports Center for daily training for their club teams (serving over 1,800 families), and to host local, regional and national youth volleyball tournaments. Combined with the St. Joe’s Sports Dome, Schoolcraft can now host regional and national volleyball tournaments for 216 teams, bringing thousands of families to greater Detroit for these events. The addition of the Michigan Elite brand to the SC Program continues Schoolcraft’s mission of being the home to the best youth athletic training, in a safe, empowering environment, with a focus on academic and athletic excellence, health, and nutrition.

Mercy Elite will be growing their services on campus in the Sports Center to provide further sports performance and training programs and on-site sports medicine physician services. Physical therapy, strength and conditioning for athletes and fitness training for all levels will be available for interested schools, clubs, teams or individuals.

Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, its multi-specialty physician group partner IHA, and Schoolcraft College are collaborating in the development of a new 80,000- square-foot medical center on the Schoolcraft campus that will include primary, specialty and urgent care as well as imaging services. The health center will also support Schoolcraft College’s Healthcare and Health Sciences programs with hands-on educational opportunities for students to prepare them for in-demand jobs in the growing health care fields.

About Schoolcraft College:

Schoolcraft College is a public community college, offering classes at and online at www.schoolcraft.edu. The college enrolls more than 30,000 students each year in both credit programs and continuing education and professional development (non-credit) courses. The college has 70 different academic majors and programs leading to a skills certificate, certificate, associate degree, or post-associate certificate. Students can also take advantage of bachelor degree-level courses and programs offered by several university partners onsite or transfer credits to other four-year institutions saving time and money in pursuit of a bachelor’s or higher degree.

About Saint Joseph Mercy Health System

Saint Joseph Mercy Health System (SJMHS) is a health care organization serving seven counties in southeast Michigan including Livingston, Washtenaw, Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Jackson, and Lenawee. It includes 537-bed St. Joseph Mercy Ann Arbor, 443bed St. Joseph Mercy Oakland in Pontiac, 304-bed St. Mary Mercy Livonia, 136-bed St. Joseph Mercy Livingston in Howell, and 133-bed St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea. Combined, the five hospitals are licensed for 1,553 beds, have five outpatient health centers, six urgent care facilities, more than 25 specialty centers; employ more than 16,200 individuals and have a medical staff of nearly 2,700 physicians. SJMHS has annual operating revenues of about $1.9 billion and returns about $120 million to its communities annually through charity care and community benefit programs.

SJMHS is a member of Trinity Health, a leading Catholic health care system based in Livonia, Michigan, with operations in 22 states. Trinity Health employs about 129,000 colleagues, has annual operating revenues of $18.3 billion, assets of $26.2 billion, and returns about $1.1 billion to its communities annually in the form of charity care and other community benefit programs

For more information on health services offered at Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, please visit www.stjoeshealth.org.

About Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy

Michigan Elite Volleyball Academy was established in 2010 and has become the largest and most successful club in Michigan, consistently developing players at the highest levels of amateur volleyball competition (four players awarded Miss Volleyball in past 9 years). Our Academy offers the finest coaching staff in the region and provides an opportunity for young individuals to further their experience and training in volleyball through instruction from qualified coaches in practice and increased competition in tournaments throughout the state, regionally and nationally. Michigan Elite is dedicated to serving our student-athletes and parents in all aspects of club volleyball and is committed to developing young women into ethical competitors. Michigan Elite operates across six locations in Warren, Wixom, Downriver, Monroe, Midland and Washington Township and also runs a large variety of competitive club and high school tournaments.

About the Wolves and Hawks Soccer Club

The Michigan Wolves-Hawks Soccer Club is a premier level soccer club based in Livonia, Michigan that provides a unique opportunity for the serious, skilled and dedicated soccer players. The club was formed in 1974, and is a 501c-3 non-profit organization. www.michiganwolveshawks.com