Bev Godwin (MPP ’82) recently began a new job as senior advisor in the U.S. Department of State.
After 31 years at U-M (two as an MPP student; the rest as a professor of policy, economics, information, and computer science; and the last five as dean of the School of Information) Jeff MacKie-Mason (MPP ’82) departs Ann Arbor for a new adventure. This fall, he became university librarian and chief digital scholarship officer at UC-Berkeley, as well as professor of information science and economics. It was a tough transition for Jeff, who has loved Michigan, but it’s a great professional and family opportunity. And he doesn’t have to throw away any of his maize and blue socks.
John Reinemann (MPP ’90) and his wife Sarah are pleased to announce the birth of their twins, Elisabeth and Theodore. One weighed in at 8 lbs 5 oz and the other at 9 lbs! John is executive secretary of the Wisconsin Higher Educational Aids Board, and has already begun saving for the kids’ college funds.
Seth Johnson (MPP ’93) and Kate Snyder welcomed Woodrow Nelson this May. He’s already thinking about where to go to graduate school.
Mark Long (MPP ’96) was elected vice president of the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management. Mark and his wife Laura Evans (MPP ’96) are professors at the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Policy and Governance.
Jeff Rosa (MPP ’96) accepted a new job in the DC-area as managing director of the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy. He previously worked for 18 years for the State of Ohio, including the last 12 as director of the State Physical Therapy Board.
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While on vacation at Drakesbad Lodge in Lassen Volcanic National Park, Noam and Sara Glick (MPP ’00 and MPP ’01) met professors Dean Yang and Sharon Maccini by chance; it all started with conversation over Dean’s Dexter-Ann Arbor Run shirt.
Danielle P. Turnipseed, Esq. (MPP/MHSA ’00) was recognized as a “40 Under 40” top attorney by the National Bar Association at its national convention in Los Angeles. Danielle has worked in health policy for more than 15 years, and has practiced law for five.
Laura Smith Curry (MPP ’03) and her family, including big sister Cora, welcomed baby Evelyn Elaine “Evie” this August. They are all adjusting to being a family of four!
Daniel Rothschild (MPP ’05) was named executive director of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Previously, he was senior vice president and chief operating officer.
Franklin Esson, Jr. (MPP ’08) was recently promoted to executive director of the New York State Senate Higher Education Committee after successfully working to enact bipartisan state legislation on campus sexual assault.
After four years in the private sector, Erik Fonseca (MPP ’09) reenters the public sector as an eligibility worker for the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Social Services (DPSS).
Lesley Freiman (MPP ’09) and her husband Derek Narendra (MD ’11) welcomed baby girl Isla Olivia Narendra this June. Isla clocked in at 6 lbs, 9 oz, and 19 inches tall.
Will Rich (MPP ’09) became the U.S. Treasury attaché to the United Arab Emirates and Sultanate of Oman, based at the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi. He is one of 12 Treasury diplomats worldwide and is responsible for a wide range of issues, from finance and macroeconomics to countering the financing of terrorism.
Nathan Triplett (MPP ’09) was elected president of the Michigan Municipal League at the organization’s 2015 Annual Convention. Nathan is the youngest president elected to lead the organization since its founding in 1899. He is currently serving as mayor of the City of East Lansing.
Matt Johnson (MPP ’10) recently published his first book, American Hearts, a collection of non-fiction essays on American life, work, dreams, and death. A policy wonk by trade, Matt likes to write in his free time. It’s a skill he claims to have learned at the Ford School. Matt successfully funded the book project through Kickstarter.
Colin Lewis-Beck (MA/MPP ’10) took program evaluation with Professor Bob Schoeni during his first semester at the Ford School and got seriously interested in statistics. One of the assigned texts was Applied Regression: An Introduction (1980). A new edition of the book was released this July, which Colin co-authored with Mike Lewis-Beck. Colin lives in Ames, IA, where he’s working on his PhD.
Chris Roberts (PhD ’10) was awarded the 2015 Gordon Hirabayashi Human Rights Book Award by the American Sociological Association. The book, The Contentious History of the International Bill of Human Rights (Cambride University Press 2014) is based on his dissertation. Chris and Robin Phinney’s (PhD ’10) son Finn turned one in July.
Shelley Rosenberg (BA ’10) married Daniel Ben-Zadok (MPP ’14) on August 30, 2015 in Southfield, Michigan.
Sarah M. Brooks (MPP/MA ’11) recently transitioned from the U.S. government to a job as a human rights advocate with the International Service for Human Rights, an NGO in Geneva. She is responsible for programs and advocacy related to East Asia.
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Lelia Gowland (MPP ’11) launched Gowland, LLC, which offers workplace negotiations coaching for women. Lelia counsels women around the country on a range of issues: making the strongest possible case for a promotion, navigating maternity leave, landing a new gig, and more.
Rebecca Lopez Kriss (MPP ’11) and her husband Nick Stanley (MSE ’02) welcomed Verbena Ruth this June. She weighed 7 lbs, 4 oz and was born in Philadelphia, in the nation’s first hospital.
Christopher J. Murillo (MPP ’11) has a new job as a Foreign Service officer with the U.S. Department of State.
Charles Clark (MPP/MBA ’12) and his wife, Jessica, had a baby girl in July: Charlotte Catherine Clark. Charles also started a new job this year as a collaboration specialist and Presidential Management Fellow with the Santa Fe National Forest.
Jesse Franzblau (MPP ’12) began work at OpenTheGovernment.org. Franzblau will analyze policy, monitor and evaluate federal open government policies, and coordinate a coalition of 90-some organizations committed to promoting open government and accountability.
Katie Rodriguez (MPP ’12) and her husband Ernesto Falcon welcomed son Gabriel Rodriguez-Falcon this January. Hopefully he will follow in his mother’s footsteps and become a Wolverine and a Fordie!
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Bennett Stein (BA ’12) started a new job as special assistant with the City of New York’s Board of Correction. The nine-person, non-judicial oversight board regulates, monitors, and inspects the city’s correctional facilities.
Ben Lusher (MPP/MBA ’13) welcomed his second little Wolverine, daughter Eleanor Rose Lusher, this January. #forevergoblue.
Rohan Dharan (BA ’13) lives in New Delhi, India, where he is a Fulbright-Nehru English teaching assistant. He teaches English to 500-some students in a government-aided school.
DJ McKerr (BA ’13) recently celebrated his two-year anniversary as a healthcare analyst with Huron Consulting Group in Chicago.
This September, Daniel Trubman (MPP ’13) began working as a management analyst with the City of Boston’s Office of Budget Management.
Will Yates (MPP ‘13) and Janani Ramachandran Yates (MPP ‘13) were married in June in Washington, DC, where both have lived and worked for the past two years. It was a Ford School-studded wedding! Professor Betsey Stevenson officiated. Also in attendance were Ford School professors and alumni Carl Simon, Justin Wolfers, Caroline Meehan (MPP ’13), Cynthia Rathinasamy (MPP ’13), Erica Brown (MPP ’13), Anne Zerbe (MPP ’13), Colleen Campbell (MPP/MA ’14), Kelle Parsons (MPP/MA ’13), D’Wayne Bell (MPP ’14), Lauren Frohlich (MPP ’13), Rayva Virginkar (MPP/MPH ’13), Andrew Bracken (MPP ’13), Naomi Joseph (MPP ’13), and Jeff Kessner (MPP ’13).
Amy Jiao (MPP ’14) married Yilun Sun this May in Ann Arbor. Amy works at the University of Michigan Kidney and Epidemiology Cost Center.
Steven Rzeppa (BA ’14) has declared his candidacy for the 23rd District seat in the Michigan House of Representatives. He urges fellow alums to follow his campaign. He has served on City Council in his hometown of Trenton since 2013.
Recent graduate Katie Koziara (BA ’15) is now a program associate at the Partnership for Public Service in Washington, DC. Katie manages social media and event marketing.
Below is a formatted version of this article from State & Hill, the magazine of the Ford School. View the entire Fall 2015 State & Hill here.