Giving to the Ford School

Inspiring the next generation of leaders

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A bold vision. A lasting impact.

The Ford School is a top-ranked policy school at the world-class University of Michigan. Our mission is to inspire and prepare our graduates to take on our communities’ and the world’s most pressing challenges.

Giving Blueday

Record-setting day of giving

On March 15, the Ford School community raised the bar once again for the number of donors in a single day, garnering more than $43,000 for student support.

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The field of public policy involves difficult work that includes strong scientific inquiry and analysis, as well as leadership skills to navigate politics, advocacy and coalition building, communication across differences, and the ability to envision and make change. We have long been known and respected as the leading public policy school for rigorous, objective data and policy analysis, and effective communication.

Gifts provide scholarships that bring talented and diverse students to campus, support internship and applied learning experiences that shape career trajectories, and develop critical leadership skills to have a positive impact on individuals, organizations, and communities. They also underwrite game-changing faculty research that transform how we address society's most intractable challenges and arm policy communities around the world with first-rate academic insights and discoveries.

"The Ford School puts people together—especially in partnerships across the state—and they interact, and the outcome is the betterment of society, giving all people a voice and a path.”

Hal and Carol Kohn

With the Kohn Charitable Trust's gift, the Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy gives a voice to the disadvantaged in society.

Read about Hermann and Amalie Kohn

David Bohnett

The David Bohnett Foundation Leadership and Public Service Fellowships.

"Our foundation motto is 'improving society through social activism.' Both private and public sector leaders have an enormous responsibility to set an example in all ways to lead with honesty, accountability, empathy and a deep respect for differences of opinion."

Members of the Ford School community make data-driven discoveries to catalyze public policy change.

Ford School graduates go on to create a positive impact on people and communities across the globe.

Read about them here

Meet the problem-solvers, leaders, and advocates who benefit from your gifts.

Alvin Christian smiling in an office space with tables and orange chairs in the background

“He [Alvin] pulls off the nifty trick of applying rigorous interdisciplinary analysis to draw conclusions that he writes about in clear, persuasive prose. Moreover, Alvin’s work feels both novel and important.” Ford School writing instructor Alex Ralph, who chaired the selection committee.

2023 Eckstein prize winner

"I am gaining the analytical tools and policy foundations necessary for work in higher education policy research, analysis, and advocacy." Dana Fenster (MPP/MA '20)

Bentley gift bolsters MPP internships

Thanks to a generous gift from Ann Bentley and the Alvin M. Bentley Foundation in 2020 and in 2021, 10 MPP students were able to secure required...

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Headshots of Alex Baum, Bethany Haddad, Ben Levine, Rebecca Mendelsohn, and Cassidy Uchman

Meet our donors

U-M President Mark Schlissel on the Joan and Sanford Weill Youth Empowerment Fund, which will improve education and employment opportunities for disadvantaged youth from the Detroit area.

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Ambassador Ronald Weiser on the importance of international policy education. The Weiser Diplomacy Center is preparing the next generation of foreign affairs leaders.