Beyond Insights is a collaboration with the MSU College of Arts & Letters, including The Writing Center, the Indigenous Graduate Student Collective, the Center for Language Teaching Advancement (CeLTA), and the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities Language and Media Lab. Beyond Insights participants are 6th grade students, residents of Lansing, MI, and attend Lansing Public Schools. The Writing Center administered, supervised, and leads the program.

Beyond Insights is designed as a series of fun and stimulating Friday workshops that engage 6th grade Lansing Public Schools students in a wide range of activities surrounding creativity, composing, culture, and the arts & humanities. Over two five-week programs, students practice composing in a variety of ways, including storytelling and video-making. Students also work in small groups and learn about what it means to negotiate and work in groups to compose something together.

Our goal is to increase youth participation in the arts and culturally-relevant programming. Beyond Insights was made in part to bring the arts back to students, since most art programs have been cut from grade school curriculum in the Lansing School Districts. Additionally, students think about what kinds of learners they are and reflect on their composing processes. Providing this opportunity for participants allows students to experience a college campus, exposes them to the arts, and stimulates a lifelong love for learning, community, and cultural difference.