The Ford School is pleased to announce the expansion of the Riecker Michigan Delegation Fellowship through a generous $750,000 pledge from the Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation.
When established with an estate gift from longtime Ford School friend and benefactor Margaret Ann (Ranny) Riecker, the pilot fellowship was intended to send one competitively selected master's student to Washington, DC each winter to complete a six-month assignment with a senator or representative from the State of Michigan delegation. The Towsley Foundation’s gift will expand the endowment, allowing the Ford School to support additional Riecker Fellows in the years ahead.
The first Riecker Michigan Delegation Fellow will be hosted by the Office of U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), the senior member of the Michigan delegation, from January 4 to June 30, 2016, allowing a student to lend support during the winter legislative session. The fellow will work under the direction of Senator Stabenow’s chief of staff and the legislative assistant who is leading the policy portfolio to which the fellow is assigned.
For more information about the Riecker Michigan Delegation Fellowship, please visit http://fordschool.umich.edu/riecker-fellowship.
About Ranny Riecker
Margaret Ann (Ranny) Riecker (HLLD '05), who passed away in Midland, Mich., on April 7, 2014, was among the Ford School's most generous volunteers and supporters. Her philanthropy through the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation (where she was president), the Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation (where she was chair), and personal giving with her late husband John Riecker (AB '52, JD '54), has been instrumental in the Ford School's advancement over the years:
helping to construct the school's building through the naming of the Margaret Dow Towsley Reading Room in honor of Ranny's late mother;
launching the Towsley Foundation Policymaker-in-Residence program, which brings individuals with significant policymaking experience to campus to engage with students and faculty; and
advancing the Science, Technology, and Public Policy program through funding for competitively selected postdoctoral fellows.
A former Republican National Committee member, Ranny Riecker was a frank advocate for a Michigan characterized by a diverse economic base, effective health care, informed policy, civility in public life, a vital nonprofit sector, and respect for the value of education.