“Education Touches All People”

"I have always loved children. I love the way their minds work," says Carin Levine Ehrenberg (AB '88). "I love how they think and learn, how they react. Friends and family sometimes call me Mary Poppins. I am always the one who wants to hang out with the kids."

When she was a child herself, Ehrenberg looked up to her grandfather, Herbert Klosk (AB '37), who attended college and law school at the University of Michigan. She was proud to follow in his footsteps at U-M, where her interest in children led her to pursue a degree in clinical child psychology.

"Part of the reason I wanted to become a child psychologist was because I wanted to make an impact early on in a person's life," says Ehrenberg. Recently, that same sentiment inspired her to chair the Campaign Advisors committee for the Dean's Advisory Council.

As a mother and as a psychologist, Ehrenberg is passionate about the Marsal School's many innovative approaches to creating educational opportunities. She also wants there to be more Marsal-trained teachers in the field, like her friend Julie Zick Migala (AB '88, TeachCert '95). The two met in South Quad when they were both undergraduates. Migala went on to teach kindergarten for many years in Benton Harbor, Michigan, and now teaches second grade in Berrien Springs, Michigan. "She just started her 30th year in the classroom. She's still teaching because she loves it so much," says Ehrenberg.

Through their $4.8M commitment to the Marsal School, Ehrenberg and her husband Roger Ehrenberg (BBA '87) have established several funds, including the Ehrenberg Fund to Encourage Future Educators and Learning Leaders and the Ehrenberg Fund for LEAPS. These resources will significantly impact the experience of current Marsal School students, and encourage future generations of U-M students to pursue the teaching profession by alleviating the financial barrier to earning a teaching degree. The Ehrenbergs also hope that their commitment will inspire others who would like to support the university to give to the Marsal School. 

As part of the Look to Michigan Campaign, U-M has launched a new matching program for first-time major donors. With the Look To Michigan Student Support Matching Program, donors making their first major gift of $50,000 will be eligible to receive a 1:2 matching contribution if that gift is designated toward an area that offsets the cost of students attending the university. Gifts may be pledged over five years, and will be matched from $50,000 (university match of $25,000) up to $1,000,000 (university match of $500,000).

Dean Moje says, "Educators need access to resources more urgently than most people realize. I'm grateful to Carin for helping us convey the scale and importance of this need to our prospective donors. Our $150 million campaign goal is ambitious, but its impact on educators—and the students they serve—will be truly meaningful."

"Education is something we can all relate to," says Ehrenberg. "Every single person who attends the University of Michigan had teachers who made their lives better." She is quick to acknowledge that not every alum is in a position to give a major gift. That's why, as campaign chair, enabling broad participation is important.

This fall, Marsal Education is launching an Annual Giving Society. The society will recognize donors who give $1,000 or more each year to the Marsal School. Alumni who graduated six to 10 years ago may join the society by giving $250 a year. And the most recent alumni—graduates from the past one to five years—may join with an annual gift of $100.

In addition, the university has established the Look to Michigan Recurring Gift Match Program. From now through the end of this fiscal year (June 30, 2026), donors who choose to set up a monthly payroll deduction or a recurring gift will have their donation matched dollar for dollar up to $100 per month. That means a monthly $10 gift will actually be $20, which adds up over the course of a year.

"It makes a difference if we can crowdsource," says Ehrenberg, who is emphatic that gifts of all sizes will help the Marsal School meet its campaign goal. "I want to create a sense of pride about giving back to the school." After all, she says, "What's more important than teachers? What's more important than education? It touches all people."