Two fellows were charged with researching current school policies throughout Michigan and the U.S. to identify best practices of reducing tobacco usage among student populations. The fellows were encouraged to identify policies that use a lesser or non-punitive approach in punishing offenders within a student body. Fellows used their findings to craft policy recommendations for current policies that could be adapted and provided research for the development of non-smoking/vaping social...

The research fellow worked with the Michigan League of Conservation Voters to research “Soil Reclamation Best Practices” as part of a pro-environment legislative proposal to reform the regulation of aggregate (gravel) mining in the state of Michigan. The fellow’s research identified successful industry and government practices from around the world and analyzed the efficacy of those practices within the State of Michigan's regulatory...

The research fellow worked with Detroit’s Civil Rights’ Inclusion and Opportunity (CRIO) Department to develop an advocacy primer for municipal officials. The primer laid out a framework for action and identified strategies for working at multiple levels of government to improve equity and inclusion in the city of...

The research fellow investigated the likely impacts of adopting a nonpartisan primary with ranked choice voting in Michigan at the request of the Michigan Consensus Policy Project (MCCP). The MCPP is a bipartisan working group of former state officials that seeks to identify nonpartisan solutions to the state's most pressing...

The University of Michigan-Flint Office of Economic Development received a Cybersecurity Training Center designation and is interested in pursuing and implementing cybersecurity training in North Flint. The team recommended a cybersecurity training program, CyberStart America, and identified a community center, Berston Field House, to gauge community interest and discuss implementing this program. They also worked with Berston Field House to create a survey to be used to understand community interest, which can also be used as supporting documentation for future grant proposals by...

The Homeless Action Network of Detroit (HAND) is developing a coordinated approach to engage with landlords to rent to people experiencing homelessness in Detroit to ease coordination and communication by consolidating housing resources into one system-wide database. The researchers’ role focused on investigating housing databases and best practices, compiling contacts and resources for use in the database, conducting case studies of successful landlord engagement in comparable cities, and compiling a report of the findings. Their report provides HAND with the necessary information to...

Oakland County maintains a high standard of living, but food insecurity exists throughout pockets of the county.  For Oakland County to maintain and further strengthen its economic prosperity, community health, and workforce, it must reconsider its approach to meeting its communities' basic needs. In March of 2021, the American Rescue Plan (ARP) was signed into law, distributing money to states and counties to address urgent COVID-19 response efforts and the systemic public health effects that have contributed to the unequal impact of the pandemic. The students were tasked with identifying...

The team’s research evaluated the economic benefits of three city-government climate resilience projects implemented in the Great Lakes Region (GLR). The case studies are adaptation projects implemented in Toledo, Ohio, Two Harbors, Minnesota and Ann Arbor, Michigan.  The cases indicate climate-resilience focused interventions were cost-beneficial for Two Harbors and Ann Arbor and projected to be cost-beneficial for Toledo. The research illustrates the complexity of climate-resiliency projects and the economic considerations that exist within them. The report provides an overview of each...

The team provided a framework and guide for future policy makers enrolled in the City of Detroit’s Executive Leadership Program. The presentation is divided into three categories: policy making process, influences on the policy making process, and limitation on influences/ethics.  There are six steps identified in the policy making process: proposing legislation; submitting legislation to City Council; public input; committee hearings; voting; implementation; and corporation council review. City Administration may also create regulations, decisions or executive orders. Policy can be...

The Great Lakes Commission’s Action Plan for a Resilient Great Lakes notes, “All members of the Great Lakes community have a role to play in securing a more resilient Great Lakes Basin.” One such role community members can play, and a stated goal across the Action Plan, was to connect existing knowledge on the Great Lakes Basin and ensure community expertise is available. Responding to this need in the community, the Great Lakes Commission (GLC), in partnership with Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, sought to aggregate existing studies and assessments that identify risks related to...