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 Erika Rosebrook is reacquainting herself with familiar faces in West Michigan. As the associate director for the Michigan Office of Urban Initiatives based in West Michigan, Rosebrook's job is to facilitate a discussion between the cities in the region and the governor's office.
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 After a tumultuous decade, manufacturers are again helping drive Michigan’s economy, rather than dragging it into the abyss as the sector did during the recession.
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 Many a journalist on deadline has turned to the online service Help A Reporter Out, which matches reporters with PR professionals for potential sources for their articles. They have Peter Shankman to thank for it. As an author, entrepreneur and communicator, Shankman is an expert source on social media, public relations, marketing and advertising. He will be in Grand Rapids April 25 to deliver a keynote address, “The next revolution will be in your pocket,” to the West Michigan Public Relations Society of America. Shankman has served as an adviser to many international companies, including Holland-based office furniture manufacturer Haworth. He spoke with MiBiz for a fast-paced interview.
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 When Oliver Evans steps down in July as president of Kendall College of Art and Design — the school he’s led for 18 years — he will be succeeded by David Rosen, currently the senior VP and VP of academic affairs at Woodbury University, a private California school. A former professor of English and drama, he also directed academic and small theater productions and is a published writer of fiction and of one rock song, “Valerie,” released by the Greg Kihn Band. Rosen talked with MiBiz about his vision for Kendall.
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 After two decades in R&D at Upjohn, Pharmacia and Pfizer, Rob DeWit in 2009 joined the Southwest Michigan Innovation Center to help keep scientific talent in the region and grow the state’s life science base. The Michigan Strategic Fund in January awarded SMIC a $600,000 grant. While he said he wasn’t ready to get into the specifics of how those funds will be implemented, DeWit met with MiBiz to discuss the life sciences and the sector’s role in the state’s economy.
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 Ric Roane joined Warner Norcross & Judd LLP in 2008 as an attorney in its family law practice group, which he now chairs, and as the white-shoe law firm’s first openly gay partner. Roane, 53, who was just profiled in the firm’s 2011 Diversity and Inclusion report, said he feels safe being out at the firm. He talks with MiBiz about being a successful openly gay professional in West Michigan.
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 After he left the investment world in Chicago, Mark Sellers came back to Grand Rapids to start BarFly Ventures LLC to open bars and restaurants in downtown. Sellers owns HopCat, The Viceroy, Stella’s, and McFadden’s, and is a partner in The Pyramid Scheme. MiBiz spoke with Sellers at Stella’s to discuss the downtown business scene, what’s needed and what’s next.
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