PhD Student Bios

Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy
Joint PhD Program in Policy and Social Science

Phd in Public Policy & Economics | Phd in Public Policy & Political Science | Phd in Public Policy & Sociology


Phd in Public Policy & Economics	Top
Beam, Emily Emily Beam received her B.S. from the University of Michigan in 2006, majoring in Economics, Mathematics, and Spanish. While a student, she was an editor at The Michigan Daily, and she wrote her honors thesis on the relationship between maternal employment and time investments in children. Her interests center on labor and development economics.
Broussard, Nzinga Harriet Nzinga graduated from Oberlin College with a degree in Mathematics and Economics in 2002. While at Oberlin, she served as a research and teaching assistant with the McNair Scholar Program. As an honors student in Economics, Nzinga completed research examining the determinants of juvenile crime and the degree to which youths respond to the severity of punishment. Her current studies focus on how economic theory is used in the development of public policy.
Fitzpatrick, Anne
Garlick, Robert
Godlonton, Susan
Goldberg, Jessica Ann Jessica has a Masters in Public Affairs from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University, and a Bachelors degree in Economics and Political Science from Stanford University. Her research interests are in development and labor economics. She is working on several field experiments in Malawi. One project examines the extent to which social norms about sharing affect the ability to save in rural communities. Another project, in conjunction with with her advisor Dean Yang and Xavi Gine of the World Bank, studies ways to improve micro lending and saving for agricultural loan customers.
Hernández, Mónica
Hyman, Joshua Josh received his B.A. from Tufts University in 2005, majoring in Quantitative Economics and minoring in Music. While at Tufts, he wrote a thesis examining the effect of No Child Left Behind on arts and music education. After graduating, he worked for two years in the Social and Economic Policy Division at Abt Associates Inc, a private research and consulting firm in Cambridge, MA. Josh is interested in labor economics, public finance and education policy.
Johnson, Erik Paul Erik has a B.A. in Math and Economics from St. Olaf's College. For the past year he has worked as a Research Assistant at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, DC. His interests include public economics, government redistribution programs, and labor economics.
McLaren, Zoe Ms. McLaren received a B.A. in Government and Biology from Dartmouth College in 2000, and worked at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University before coming to Michigan. Her dissertation research focuses on issues of poverty and health in southern Africa.
Montgomery, Nicholas James Nicholas Montgomery transferred to the joint doctoral program after his second year of a joint Law/Economics doctoral program at UM. He has a B.A. in Math and Economics from Franklin-Marshall. His research interests center on law and economics
Murphy, Daniel
Nunn, Ryan Douglas
Ratner, David Diamond David Ratner received a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University in 2004. After graduating, he worked for two years as a research assistant at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, DC. While at Michigan, David has served as a research assistant in the National Poverty Center studying long term trends in poverty. David is interested in labor economics, public finance and macroeconomics.
Walsh, F G Elias Elias has a Masters in Public Policy from the Gerald R. Ford School, and a B.A. in Mathematics and Philosophy from Cornell College. He taught high school mathematics in Chicago as a Teach For America corps member where he learned a great deal about humility. While at the Ford School he interned at the Government Accountability Office where he worked on projects relating to No Child Left Behind and higher education financial aid. His fields of specialization are Labor Economics and Public Finance.


Phd in Public Policy & Political Science	Top
Bray, Janna Paige
Demessie, Menna Aklilu Menna Demessie is a PhD Candidate in Political Science and Public Policy at the University of Michigan and National Youth Coordinator of the Society of Ethiopians Established in the Diaspora (SEED) - a national, nonprofit organization established in 1993 that works to enhance and cultivate the lives of Ethiopians and Ethiopian Americans in order for them to become productive citizens of society. She received her B.A. in Economics and Law and Society from Oberlin College where she also served as senior class president. Her research focuses on legislative behavior, racial and ethnic politics, immigration, and the political participation of African immigrants in the United States. Menna was the 2006 Walter Rodney Prize Recipient at the University of Michigan for her paper entitled, "Rethinking the American Dream: Immigration and Depression in the case of Sinedu Tadesse," which will be published in the International Journal of Ethiopian Studies in the Fall of 2007. She was also part of the Ford School Public Policy team that traveled to Ethiopia to conduct social and economic analyses prior to the 2005 elections in Ethiopia and has spoken on Capitol Hill among other places about the critical need for grassroots political and civic engagement of Ethiopian Americans in the U.S. and abroad.
Ellis, Cali Cali Mortenson Ellis spent the past year as a Doctoral Fellow in the graduate school of the RAND Corporation in Santa Monica, CA. She worked most recently as a Departmental Analyst in the Homeland Security Directorate of the Michigan National Guard, and an Assistant Policy Advisor in the Michigan Governor's Office. Her main research interests are in international security, homeland security and intelligence. Cali has a BA in economics from Bates College, and an MPP from the University of Michigan Gerald R.Ford School of Public Policy.rn
Gong, Abe
Guha, Sourav
Hemphill, Portia
Kabo, Valenta Loraine Valenta Kabo is a PhD Candidate in the Joint Program of Political Science and Public Policy. Prior to matriculating in the PhD program, Valenta obtained a Master's degree in Public Policy, in the course of which, she concentrated on Economics and Foreign Policy. She also obtained a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan. During law school, she focused her papers on constitutional development and economic trade blocs in East Africa. Her current research interests are economic policy, political economy, development, judicial independence and theories of law. Her dissertation work entails exploring the relationship between property rights and economic outcomes.
Katz, Daniel M Daniel has a B.S. in Political Science from the University of Oregon, a J.D. from the Michigan Law School and a M.P.P. from the Ford School. He produces scholarship on American Politics, Public Law and Network Analysis. Within American Politics, Dan focuses his attention upon Electoral Law and Institutions, Judicial Politics, Federalism and State and Local Policy. His recent publications include those in the Journal of Law and Politics (2006), the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Law and Social Change (2007) and Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy (2008 Forthcoming). In his current project, he uses network analysis to map the social structure of the federal judiciary. For more info: http://www.sitemaker.umich.edu/dankatz
Kavanagh, Jennifer Erin Jennifer has a AB in Government from Harvard. Before coming to University of Michigan, Jennifer worked at the RAND Corporation where she analyzed terrorist incidents for inclusion in the RAND-MIPT Terrorism Chronology and contributed to numerous projects on military manpower issues, such as deployment, retention, and compensation. She is studying terrorism and political violence, focusing on terrorist group structure and motivations and international cooperation on counterterrorism. She also participates in data collection for the development of a Global Terror Network database which carries out network analysis on terrorist cells.
Loftis, Kenyatha Vauthier Kenyatha Loftis is a candidate for the PhD in Public Policy & Political Science at the University of Michigan. She has received a B.A. in Political Science from Yale University (2002) and an M.A. in Political Science from the University of Michigan (2006). Among her research interests are public opinion, political participation, race and civil rights policy, and research methodology. Kenyatha's research focuses on how and when social policy stimulates participation in politics; how race and gender influence the formation of policy; and the impact of institutional rules and organization on political identities. Her dissertation, entitled “Creating a Gifted Class: The Role of State Institutions and Ideology in the Distribution of Elite Educational Opportunities,” examines minority student access to elite educational opportunities at the elementary and secondary levels. For more information, visit: http://sitemaker.umich.edu/kenyatha.loftis .
Phinney, Robin Linden Robin graduated from UCLA in 2000 with a degree in Political Science and Communication Studies. She was the Program Director for the UCLA Hunger Project from 1999 through 2001 and then worked as a Planning Assistant for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. Robin is interested in conducting research on domestic policies that respond to issues of poverty, homelessness, and unequal resource distribution.
Phoenix, Davin Lanier Davin has a B.A. in Political Science from Christopher Newport University. Mr. Phoenix's research interests center on issues of community, race, political opinion, policy evaluation and agenda setting. He is a Rackham Merit Fellow.
Potter, Rachel
Reid, Ashley Lauren
Reynolds, Molly
Stephens, Lafleur Nadiyah LaFleur Stephens received a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Rochester in 2002. Ms. Stephens was a Hunger Fellow at the Congressional Hunger Center in her first year out of college and was subsequently employed as a research assistant at MDRC. Ms. Stephens has two primary research interests: African-American political identity and the African-American/White achievement gap. She is a Rackham Merit Fellow.
Tkacheva, Olesya Olesya received a BA in Political Science and Economics from Hunter College in 2001. After her graduation she worked as a research assistant for Professor Howard Chernick an Hunter College’s Department of Economics. Olesya has co-authored articles for public policy and political science journals. She is interested in political economy of post-Soviet countries, federalism, and partisan politics. In her dissertation, she studies the consequences of electoral reform in Russia on parties’ campaign strategies and intergovernmental relations. View her personal site.
Ullah, Haroon K Haroon Ullah received a B.A. in Political Science from Whitman College and a M.P.A. (major field International Development) from the Kennedy School. He studied the politics of health policy reform in Morocco as a Fulbright Scholar. His research interests include development and health care policy.
Walker, Brooklyn Evann


Phd in Public Policy & Sociology	Top
Blom, Erica
Forbes, Melissa Kay Melissa Forbes graduated summa cum laude from Truman State University in 2002 with a B.A. in Political Science and a minor in Sociology. She received her master’s degree with honors in public service and administration from the Bush School of Government at Texas A&M University in 2004. Melissa’s research interests center on corporate and public governance, environmental policy, and corporate environmental behavior. She is particularly interested in collective action by institutional investors on climate risk disclosure. She is investigating how diverse institutional investors frame their decision to participate in activities to compel firms to disclose how climate risk will impact their business operations. She is also interested in the types of organizational governance structures that either hinder or facilitate shareholder activism on climate change issues.
Franco, Geraldine Geraldine graduated with a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Illinois in 1999. Geraldine entered the Sociology Program at University of Michigan in 1999 and transferred to the Ford School 's joint doctoral program in 2001. Her dissertation research focuses on contemporary migration patterns among Mexican immigrants in the Midwest and the implications of their place of residence on their cultural, structural, and political incorporation to their new environment and the United States.
Grieger, Lloyd Dale Lloyd Grieger earned a B.A. in political science from St. John's University in 2002 and an M.P.P. from the Ford School in 2004. Currently, he is a trainee at the Population Studies Center at UM's Institute for Social Research and also does research with the National Poverty Center at the Ford School and the South African Labour and Development Research Unit at the University of Cape Town. His research interests include social policy, poverty, inequality, and family structure in the United States and South Africa. Previously, Lloyd worked at the MN Department of Economic Security, the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor at the U.S. Department of State, the Urban Institute, and the Demographic and Social Statistics Bureau of the United Nations. During the summer months, Lloyd is an instructor for the Ford School's Public Policy and International Affairs Junior Summer Institute.
Johnson, Maria S Maria Johnson has a B.A. in History from Hampton University. She is a candidate for the Ph.D. in Sociology and Public Policy. Her areas of specialization include race and ethnicity, family and education policy, power and inequality, and qualitative methods. Her research interests centers on understanding the extent to which family policies reflect individuals’ lived experiences; alternative approaches to education (i.e., how families and community groups can be sites for educational and social change); and power and inequality in educational settings. Ms. Johnson’s training in research methodology includes program evaluation, qualitative and survey research design, in-depth interviews, statistical analysis, and focus group analysis. Her dissertation explores how young African-American women understand their experiences with their fathers and their relationships with men.
Killewald, Alexandra Achen
King, Katherine Elizabeth Katherine has a B.S.E. in Industrial and Operations Engineering from University of Michigan and a M.A. in Asian Studies: China from University of Michigan. She holds a NIA Fellowship and a Dissertation Fellowship in Population, Reproductive Health, and Economic Development and is a trainee at the Population Studies Center. Her research interests focus on spatial methodology and health and social stratification in China.
Lavelle, Bridget Bridget Lavelle graduated with honors from Grinnell College in 2004 with a B.A. in Mathematics and Sociology. She worked for two years as a research analyst at Child Trends in Washington, D.C., contributing to studies focusing on early childhood education and welfare reform. In 2008, she earned an M.S. in Statistics at Iowa State University, where she worked for the Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology and the Institute for Social and Behavioral Research. Bridget's current research interests revolve around quantifying and understanding the forces that produce and prolong domestic poverty, as well as analyzing and evaluating policies and programs designed to address it. Particular interests include the low-wage workforce; welfare, SCHIP, and other social programs; the influence of family structure on economic risk and child and family well-being; and other demographic influences on poverty. Her program area within sociology is Social Demography. Bridget joined the joint program in the Fall of 2008.
Lewis, R L'Heureux L'Heureux received a B.A. in Sociology from Morehouse College in 2000. L'Heureux entered the Sociology Program at University of Michigan in 2000 and transferred to the Ford School's joint doctoral program in 2001. L'Heureux's research interests include racial identity, neighborhoods and social culture, and educational policy. He studies the interplay between racial identity and educational achievement.
Paul, Anju Anju Mary Paul received a B.B.A. (First Class Honors) in International Business from the National University of Singapore in 1998. She subsequently worked for five years as an Assistant Manager in Singapore Airlines before leaving to pursue an M.A. in Journalism from New York University. As a reporter, she published various stories on Muslim immigrant teenagers living in New York City and on gender and labor issues. Her work has been published in Women's eNews, In The Fray magazine, Brooklyn Rail, the Austin-American Statesman, and the NYU Alumni Magazine. Her research interests continue to center around issues of immigration, race and ethnicity, especially as they relate to gender and labor studies. She is currently conducting a cross-national study of the migration and destination decisions of migrant domestic workers from the Philippines.
Pineda, Daniela Daniela Pineda received her B.A. in Sociology/Russian from Pomona College in Claremont, CA. While at Pomona College, Ms. Pineda completed primary research about success factors for Latinas in higher education. Her work in this area was published in the McNair Journal of Research and the International Journal for Diversity in Organizations, Communities, and Nations. After completing her undergraduate studies Ms. Pineda was a post-baccalaureate fellow with the CHOICES Project: Access, Equity and Diversity in Higher Education based at the Institute for Social Science Research of the University of California, Los Angeles. Ms. Pineda transferred to the joint doctoral program after her first year in the doctoral program in Sociology at U of M. Her research interests include higher education policy (access, equity, and affirmative action), campus racial dynamics, and the retention and persistence of Latina/o students in higher education.
Roberts, Christopher Nigel Christopher Roberts is a Doctoral Candidate and holds a B.A. from UCLA and a J.D. from the University of Southern California. In his dissertation project, Christopher examines the social origins of the modern international human rights concept. His work shows how the human rights concept became the site for a series of seminal struggles over competing institutional frameworks for organizing social and political relationships, and how the formidable opposition that developed against human rights between 1944 and 1966 has been influential in shaping the modern human rights concept, itself. Christopher is currently a Visiting Scholar at UC Berkeley in the law school’s Center for the Study of Law and Society.
Ross, Karen Elizabeth Karen Ross entered the joint doctoral program in 2002 after her first year of the Sociology Doctoral program at Michigan. Karen received a BA in Sociology with High Honors from the University of Michigan in 1995 and a MA in Sociology from Johns Hopkins University in 1997. She has worked as a research assistant and contract staff at RAND, a programmer for the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, and a research analyst at the American Institutes for Research. She is a co-author of the RAND study of vouchers and charter schools, Rhetoric vs. Reality: What We Know and What We Need to Know About Vouchers and Charter Schools (2001), and recently contributed a paper analyzing the impact of charter schools on segregation in Michigan to the Brookings volume titled “Getting Choice Right: Ensuring Equity and Efficiency in Education Policy” (2005). Karen's research interests include social stratification, quantitative methodology, and domestic education policy. Her dissertation focuses on the impacts of charter schools on segregation in traditional public schools in Michigan and North Carolina.
Seefeldt, Kristin S Kristin S. Seefeldt is a Research Investigator at the University of Michigan’s Program on Poverty and Social Welfare Policy and the Assistant Director of the National Poverty Center, both within the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. Prior to coming to the University of Michigan she was a researcher at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C. Seefeldt has conducted research and published articles on a variety of social policy issues, including process analysis and field research of welfare and employment and training policies and programs. She is also a co-Principal Investigator on a panel study of Michigan welfare recipients examining barriers to employment. Her current work examines work-family balance issues in the context of the low-wage labor market and issues of work and identity among single mothers. She has a BA in American Government from Georgetown University and a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Michigan.
Wyse, Jessica Jasmine Jessica graduated from Wesleyan University in 2000 and received a Master's in Public Policy from the Ford School in 2005. Before graduate school Jessica worked at the Women's Prison Association and as a paralegal with the Juvenile Rights Division of the Legal Aid Society, both in New York. Jessica's interests and research include poverty and inequality, social policy relating to children and families, family structure, and criminology and reentry policy.
Yarger, Jennifer Lyn Eckerman Jennifer is a social demography doctoral trainee in the Population Studies Center at the Institute for Social Research. Her research interests include family and fertility, focusing on the effect of economic and educational institutions on behavioral and attitudinal elements of family life in the United States and Nepal. Prior to coming to Michigan, Jennifer received a B.A. in Political Science from Wellesley College. She worked as a research assistant on the Project on Global Working Families at the Harvard School of Public Health and as an instructor at the Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico City.
Zelner, Jonathan Leigh Jonathan has a B.A. in Sociology from Haverford and a Masters in Social Work with a specialty in Development/Mental Health from Washington University in St. Louis. He has spent the last year first as Research Coordinator, then as Project Director of two research projects in St. Louis that are funded by the National Center on Drug Abuse. He is co-author of three forthcoming publications. His area of specialization in Sociology would be health policy.

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