Greetings! I am very pleased to introduce The Ford School Feed – a new electronic publication designed to link our alumni and friends around the world to news and information about our community. We expect to distribute The Feed about four times per year, whenever we have important news to share.
I invite you to follow the links throughout The Feed and to the right to learn more about the activities and accomplishments of our faculty, students, and alumni.
Let me take this opportunity to tell you about some other exciting developments underway at the Ford School. We are conducting the first full-scale review of the Ford School MPP/MPA curriculum in over fourteen years. This two-year project will require input from the full range of stakeholders within the Ford School community, but the initiative will be led by our faculty, who are already enthusiastically engaged. In our early conversations, I am struck by how reflective faculty members are about all that we hope to impart to our students and about the ways in which we expect our coursework to prepare them for first-rate careers in public policy.
Our undergraduate program is now completely up and running, with a full complement of juniors and seniors. It’s been wonderful to see how much these 110 new students add to our already dynamic and energetic community, and we look forward to congratulating the very first graduating class this May.
We continue to build our excellence and visibility in a few signature areas, such as the international dimensions of policy, public policy in diverse societies, and education policy. You will be hearing more about these efforts in the future, along with other challenges such as strategic expansion of the faculty, and increasing the school’s endowment resources and ability to offer financial aid to students. Now, more than ever, we need to find ways to make a graduate education affordable for the best and brightest students and to attract and retain outstanding faculty members.
When considering whether to join the Ford School over eighteen months ago, I consulted with many people who knew the school. Over and over, they told me that if I chose to come here, I would find a gifted and creative student body with wide ranging interests, faculty colleagues who define excellence in teaching and research, an engaged and committed alumni base, and a team of professional staff that cares deeply about the mission of the school. I have found all of that here and much more. (No one mentioned being roasted by students at the hilarious holiday skit night!) I want to thank everyone who has helped me get started as dean over the past year. Daily life at the school is marked by humor, a shared belief in the value of a public policy education, and an appreciation for the contributions of all members of the community.
Last week’s inspiring inaugural events also served to remind me of the importance of our work. We are preparing students to solve some of the key public policy challenges facing our world, and I am honored and proud to be a part of the Ford School’s efforts. It is a pleasure to work with all of you as we enhance our existing strengths and explore new areas for growth and development.
Your comments and suggestions about The Feed are very welcome: please drop a note to [email protected].
Best regards,
Susan