Megan Tompkins-Stange

Assistant Professor of Public Policy

(734) 615-4261 mtompkin@umich.edu

Megan Tompkins-Stange is an assistant professor of public policy at the Ford School. She is the author of Policy Patrons: Philanthropy, Education Reform, and the Politics of Influence (Harvard Education Press, 2016). She is a scholar of education policy and philanthropy, focusing on the influence of private foundations on the politics of K-12 school reform. She received her PhD in education policy and organization studies from Stanford University.

Educational Background

BAH, Stanford University
EdM, Harvard University
PhD, Stanford University School of Education

Professional Affiliations

Philanthropy Chair Scientific Committee, ESSEC Business School (École Supérieure des Sciences Economiques et Commerciales)

Book

Policy Patrons: Philanthropy, Education Reform, and the Politics of Influence

Policy Patrons offers a rare behind-the-scenes view of decision making inside four influential education philanthropies: the Ford Foundation, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation. The outcome is an intriguing, thought-provoking look at the impact of current philanthropic efforts on education.

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Education Policy Initiative

The Education Policy Initiative (EPI) is a program within the Ford School that brings together nationally-recognized education policy scholars focused on the generation and dissemination of policy-relevant education research. EPI conducts rigorous, applied, policy-relevant, evidence-based research informed by challenging policy questions that are relevant to education practitioners and are necessary to improve educational outcomes.

PubPol 474.001
PubPol 474.002: Values & Ethics: Philanthropy
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Monday, Wednesday
/
Fall 2021 2:30-3:50 pm EDT
PubPol 586
PubPol 586: Public Management: Performance Management
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Winter 2021 2:30-3:50 pm EDT

The main objectives of this course are to enhance your ability to think analytically and write clearly about managerial challenges.
PubPol 586
PubPol 586: Public Management: Performance Management
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Winter 2021 2:30-3:50 pm EDT

The main objectives of this course are to enhance your ability to think analytically and write clearly about managerial challenges.
PUBPOL 580
PUBPOL 580.001: Values & Ethics in Public Policy
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Fall 2020 10:00-11:20 am EDT

This course seeks to make students sensitive to and articulate about the ways in which moral and political values come into play in the American policy process, particularly as they affect non-elected public officials who work in a world shaped by
PUBPOL 474
PUBPOL 474: Values & Ethics: Philanthropy
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Fall 2020 1:00-2:20 pm EDT

Private philanthropic foundations in the U.S.
PUBPOL 474.003
PUBPOL 474.003: Values & Ethics: Philanthropy
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Winter 2020 10:00-11:20 am EDT

Private philanthropic foundations in the U.S. are fundamentally private organizations that operate within the public arena, and have long played central roles in advancing social change and shaping.
PUBPOL 586.003
PUBPOL 586.003: Performance Management
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Fall 2019 10:00-11:20 am EDT

The main objectives of this course are to enhance your ability to think analytically and write clearly about managerial challenges.
PUBPOL 586.001
PUBPOL 586.001: Performance Management
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Fall 2019 10:00-11:20 am EDT

The main objectives of this course are to enhance your ability to think analytically and write clearly about managerial challenges.
PUBPOL 580.001
PUBPOL 580.001: Values & Ethics in Public Policy
Megan Tompkins-Stange
Tuesday, Thursday
/
Fall 2019 2:30-3:50 pm EDT

This course seeks to make students sensitive to and articulate about the ways in which moral and political values come into play in the American policy process, particularly as they affect non-elected public officials who work in a world shaped by

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State & Hill
Faculty News spring 2021
Jun 10, 2021
Javed Ali has appeared recently in outlets such as 60 Minutes, ABC News, CNN, the Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, NPR’s Morning Edition, and the Los Angeles Times. He’ll become an associate professor of practice at the Ford School this...
Publication
Tompkins-Stange’s new study highlights crucial role of resources in shaping federal education policy
May 20, 2021
In 2008, Bill Gates gave a speech about how his foundation viewed teacher quality—specifically, separating high-performing teachers from low-performing ones through teacher evaluation—as their most important funding priority. In 2009, the Obama...
News
Gates divorce sends shockwaves through global philanthropic community
May 7, 2021
The news of the divorce of Bill and Melinda Gates shook the international philanthropic community, with speculation about the the split would mean to the foundation that bears their name. Megan Tompkins-Stange, who studies philanthropy, was widely...
State & Hill
Faculty News fall 2020
Dec 9, 2020
Javed Ali organized a panel for New America on domestic terrorism. His new podcast, The Burn Bag, produced with two Ford School alumni, A'ndre Gonawela (BA ‘19) and Ryan Rosenthal (BA ‘19), has featured U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan, General David...
Tompkins-Stange talks COVID-19 relief trade-offs
Apr 10, 2020
Ford School professor Megan Tompkins Stange is asking: What should the role be of philanthropy during the COVID-19 crisis? She studies the power and influence of philanthropy on public policy and politics. In a recent Vox article, “These are the...

In the Media
Billionaires not stepping into policy spotlight, says Tompkins-Stange
Mar 30, 2021 Vox
“Billionaires don’t have the same reverence in the eyes of the public that they had five years ago and so I think that some of their purchase in the policy process is not necessarily as palpable as it was even four or five years ago,” said Megan...
In the Media
Tompkins-Stange comments on the COVID-19 billionaire boom
Mar 12, 2021 Washington Post
In an article in the Washington Post about the extreme wealth billionaires have gained during the COVID-19 pandemic, Tompkins-Stange, notes that tech billionaires invested comparatively little of that increased wealth back into the public sphere for...

Welcome Week
Fall 2021 BA major orientation

Aug 27, 2021, 10:00 am-4:00 pm EDT
Weill Hall
Orientation is mandatory for all incoming undergraduates enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts in public policy program.
Carbon vs. Carbon Dioxide: Using Carbon-Based (Organic) Electronics for a More Sustainable Planet

Feb 27, 2020, 4:30 pm EST
Rackham Amphitheatre (4th Floor)
EPI Speaker Series
AERA 2018 Annual Meeting April 13 - 17

Apr 13, 2018, 8:30 am EDT
New York, New York
Join EPI scholars at AERA's annual conference in New York City
Book Talks @ The Ford School
Policy Patrons: Philanthropy, education reform, and the politics of influence

Mar 20, 2017, 12:00-1:00 pm EDT
Weill Hall, Annenberg Auditorium
Policy Patrons offers a rare behind-the-scenes view of decision making inside four influential education philanthropies: the Ford Foundation, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation.
Megan Tompkins-Stange talks Policy Patrons!

Jun 15, 2016, 7:00-8:45 pm EDT
Literati Bookstore
Literati is pleased to host Megan Tompkins-Stange in support of her book Policy Patrons: Philanthropy, Education Reform, and the Politics of Influence.

David Frum: Trumpocalypse: Restoring American Democracy
Oct 5, 2020 1:00:00

David Frum discusses his new book, Trumpocalypse, and the impact of the Trump presidency on the political culture and democracy of the United States with moderator Megan Tompkins-Stange.
Ford School Class of 2020: Reading of the Names
May 2, 2020 0:22:20

Assistant Professor Megan Tompkins-Stange reads the names of our #fordschool20 graduates LIVE. #MGoGrad
Megan Tompkins-Stange: Why New York is suing the Trump Foundation
Jun 18, 2018 0:02:44

Megan Tompkins-Stange discusses the potential consequences that the Trump Foundation may face. BBC World. June, 2018.
Megan Tompkins-Stange - Remarks on behalf of the faculty
Apr 28, 2018 0:09:38

Megan Tompkins-Stange gives remarks on behalf of the faculty at the 2018 Ford School Commencement on April 28, 2018.
Megan Tompkins-Stange: Policy Patrons: Philanthropy, education reform, and the politics of influence
Mar 20, 2017 0:52:00

Megan Tompkins-Stange: She will be presenting the findings of her recently-published book, Policy Patrons: Philanthropy, Education Reform, and the Politics of Influence. March, 2017.

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