The Ford School is unique in that you can feel both completely at home yet challenged to push beyond your comfort zone to think and engage more deeply than you ever thought you could. At Michigan, I believe you find unparalleled passion and a deeply held commitment to discover, achieve, and most importantly, to serve."
Chelsea Davis
First job out of Ford School: Research Associate, American Bridge
Chelsea Davis (BA '15/MPP '19) spent her last year in graduate school working on the Hill for Senator Gary Peters during her Riecker Fellowship. After graduation, she signed on as his full-time legislative aide. Tackling issues like protecting the postal service and COVID-19 prevention, Davis is grateful for the opportunity she had to get her feet wet on the Hill with the Riecker Fellowship before diving into her permanent position. "Working as a Riecker Fellow, I learned a great deal about legislative processes, procedures, research, and writing, which has proven tremendously helpful," said Davis.
Davis spent two years after completing her BA in public policy at the Ford School working for the progressive research and communications organization, American Bridge, as a research associate. She returned to graduate school with a commitment to serving the State of Michigan, which led her back to the Ford School. "The Ford School is unique in that you can feel both completely at home yet challenged to push beyond your comfort zone to think and engage more deeply than you ever thought you could. At Michigan, I believe you find unparalleled passion and a deeply held commitment to discover, achieve, and most importantly, to serve," she said. "I pursued an MPP at the Ford School to learn how I could best serve the state I call home. That mission both led me to pursue a position with Senator Gary Peters and it continues to inspire my work daily."
When working on emergent policies, such as COVID-19 relief legislation, she keeps a keen eye on the policy details. "Many of my Ford School courses emphasized thorough analysis and relaying what you have learned concisely and clearly. This skill is something I use in my everyday work," said Davis.
She finds that no two days are alike: "Each day provides me the opportunity to dig deeper into issues of critical importance. It’s rewarding working for a Senator that is committed to drilling down on policy, understanding the nuances, and finding ways to work across the aisle to find common sense solutions for Michigan."