Adding to our talented and distinguished Ford School Committee, we are pleased to welcome two new members to the school’s external advisory group.
David Sutphen, the chief strategy and engagement officer for the online learning platform 2U, and Diana Farrell, a leader in the financial sector and government, have joined the Committee. Twenty-four committee members—who include Ford School alumni, leaders in the realm of politics, the private sector, and policy, parents of our students, and friends and family of President Gerald R. Ford—serve as school ambassadors, build valuable new connections to policymakers and policymaking arenas, provide leadership in fundraising, and advise the Dean on new initiatives that further the school’s education, research, and service objectives.
“I’m thrilled that David and Diana have agreed to join our Committee,” said Dean Michael S. Barr. “They both bring deep experience in the private and public sectors, and will be invaluable in helping us advance our Ford School mission.”
As chief strategy and engagement officer, Sutphen leads 2U’s communications and corporate brand functions, as well as the company’s social impact, public affairs, and diversity efforts. He sits on the company’s executive leadership team, and is committed to delivering high-quality online higher education. Sutphen joined 2U in 2017 from Brunswick Group, a global advisory firm, where he was a partner and head of the Washington, DC, office. During his more than eight years at the firm, he advised Fortune 500 companies on reputation, stakeholder engagement, crisis, diversity, and public affairs matters. He previously served as Chief of Staff to former Congressman Harold Ford Jr. and Judiciary Committee General Counsel to the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy. Earlier in his career, he worked for social justice advocate Bryan Steveson and clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He is a U-M Law School alum.
During the Obama Administration, Farrell served in the White House as Deputy Director of the National Economic Council and Deputy Assistant to the President for Economic Policy. Farrell is an independent director and trustee of various organizations, including eBay, Urban Institute, the National Bureau of Economic Research, and the National Academies of Sciences’ Committee on National Statistics. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Aspen World Economy Group, the Aspen Strategy Group, the Trilateral Commission, and the Bretton Woods Committee. She was the founding President and Chief Executive Officer of the JPMorgan Chase Institute, where she created a legacy of producing and publishing unique data analyses and insights leveraging the bank’s administrative transactions data. Previously, Farrell was a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company, where she was the founder and Global Head of the McKinsey Center for Government as well as the Global Head of the McKinsey Global Institute.
Founded in 1991 to promote and increase private support for the Ford School's students, research, and policy engagement, the Committee for the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy comprises leaders from the public and private sectors with an interest in public policy and higher education.
