Maryland's youth and citizens gained a valuable lesson in the history of the Underground Railroad when Mike Alewitz partnered with Baltimore Clayworks on a state-wide Artists & Communities residency entitled, "The Dreams of Harriet Tubman."

During his five-month residency, Mike Alewitz consulted with a consortium of community and interest groups to create a series of bas-relief and painted murals inspired by the Underground Railroad and the life of Railroad 'conductor' Harriet Tubman. Alewitz's Artists & Communities residency was incorporated into a larger, state-wide project commemorating the life and times of the woman known as "the Moses of her people."

Mike Alewitz and Baltimore Clayworks formed a partnership with the Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention and conducted a program of tile-making workshops for young people in crime "HotSpot" neighborhoods in Baltimore City and outlying communities in Dorchester, Harford, Prince George's, and Somerset counties. The tiles represent elements such as traditional quilt patterns used as communication symbols by enslaved women to assist those travelling the Underground Railroad, and were installed surrounding the painted mural works of Mike Alewitz.

From his research, the artist developed designs for a series of murals depicting various aspects of the legacy of Harriet Tubman. Three of these designs were completed as planned: "Education for All," at Magnolia Middle School in Joppa, Maryland; a portable mural installed at the Community Park in Cambridge; and a mural depicting Frederick Douglass and Tubman, painted on a wall in the Frederick Douglass Library at the University of Maryland, Eastern Shore.

Ernest Satchell, the Interim Chair for the Department of Fine Arts at UMES enthusiastically commented that "this project represent[ed] a significant milestone in the history of UMES," as it was "the very first commissioned art project of any kind on campus." Mike Alewitz worked with a core team of students to design and paint the mural.

A fourth design, depicting Harriet Tubman armed with a rifle, generated a great deal of community debate on the issues of gun violence, racial reconciliation, historical accuracy, and artistic vision. Local, regional, and national media covered the story as the artist and Baltimore Clayworks sought appropriate alternative sites in Baltimore for the mural (the design was not accepted by the organization in Baltimore City that had originally offered a wall). Mike Alewitz did ultimately paint the design on a banner that has toured under the auspices of the National Park Service to events such as the NAACP National Conference in Washington, DC.

This project generated further press when the mural at Magnolia Middle School was defaced with racist and sexist graffiti. Rather than focusing on the negative, the incident served as a catalyst for local discussions about race relations, and the artist invited the unidentified perpetrators to join him in repairing the damaged work.

MILLENNIUM ARTIST BIO