With a generous $500,000 commitment from Menakka and Essel Bailey, the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan will establish the Menakka and Essel Bailey Public Policy Fund. Through supporting student programs and scholarships, this endowed fund aims to improve the public policy profession by making public leadership more representative of our increasingly socioeconomically and geographically diverse communities.
“We know when policy professionals reflect the experiences and diversity of thought and perspective within the communities they serve, we get better public policy outcomes,” said Dean Celeste Watkins-Hayes. “I am grateful for Menakka and Essel’s commitment to diversity in public policy leadership.”
This year, the Baileys’ Fund will support the school’s Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute. For over four decades, the Ford School has hosted the intensive seven-week program that has helped launch promising undergraduate students on a path toward meaningful careers in public service.
“We care deeply about representation in public policy and the power it has to transform communities and improve lives,” said Essel Bailey. “We have great confidence in the Ford School’s ability to prepare leaders dedicated to the public good, and we are proud to support their important efforts.”
About the Baileys
Graduates of the University of Michigan, Menakka (MPH ‘78) and Essel (JD ‘69) Bailey have a long history of championing education access, environmental studies, and the arts. For decades, Menakka has been a managing director of Alpha Capital Inc., of Ann Arbor, an investment management company of private investments in long-term care for the elderly and technology enterprises. She previously taught social anthropology at the University of Michigan. Essel Bailey is a lawyer and private investor with a long involvement in healthcare services to older adults. He spent several years working in the Michigan state government, organized and ran two public companies, and served as a director of several publicly listed companies.
