Policy Topics

Economics and finance

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News

Stevenson and Wolfers: "Think Like an Economist"

Aug 21, 2020

Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers have launched a new podcast, called "Think Like an Economist." In a series of tweets on August 19, @JustinWolfers explained: We’re calling it Think Like an Economist because we want to teach you to,...

Alumni spotlight

Yosuke Matsuda (MPP ‘03) marries economics and public policy for organizational efficiency

Aug 18, 2020

A partner at McKinsey & Company in Japan, Yosuke Matsuda (MPP '03) helps industrial clients with strategy, organizational efficiency, productivity improvement, and company-wide transformation. Prior to coming to the Ford School, Matsuda worked at...

News

Stevenson and Wolfers: Michigan’s go-slow approach good for public health and economy

Aug 13, 2020

When other states were reopening their economies in May, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was taking a go-slow approach, which infuriated small business owners and Republican legislators. An article in Mlive says that as COVID-19 cases are surging in...

News

Detroit unemployment rate drops, but 1 in 5 residents in financial trouble

Aug 13, 2020

More Detroiters have returned to work amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but many families continue to have difficulty affording basic necessities and worry more hardship is ahead. That's according to the latest representative survey of Detroiters from...

News

Dominguez on economic fallout from COVID-19 pandemic

Aug 12, 2020

The economic impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic has been dramatic and wide ranging, affecting millions of Americans and their employment, incomes, health care, and access to education, while exposing significant inequality in all of those...

Kathryn Dominguez speaks to prospective students at the Ford School's Spring Preview

News

Barr seeks financial inclusion for underserved communities

Aug 12, 2020

Throughout his career in academia and in government, Ford School Dean Michael S. Barr has sought ways to help low-income people get better access to the financial system, and to change the financial system to work better for low-income...

In the Media

Economic future of Michigan "an incredible question mark", Shaefer tells Free Press

Aug 11, 2020 Detroit Free Press

While Michigan’s economy didn’t “fall off a cliff” in April, and the state acted quickly to help children and families access a federal meals program, more income support is required, Shaefer says in an article in the Detroit Free...

Alumni spotlight

Bart Édes (MPP ‘87) forges international partnerships to assist Asia’s developing countries

Aug 11, 2020

As the Asian Development Bank’s North American representative, Bart Édes (MPP '87) raises awareness of the economic, environmental and social challenges facing Asia and the Pacific, and builds partnerships in Canada and the United States to meet...

In the Media

What future global role for the dollar?

Aug 10, 2020 NPR Marketplace

An NPR Marketplace story states, "The U.S. dollar has been on a pretty steady decline ever since the pandemic began and the American economy plunged into recession. As every major currency is rising against the greenback, some financial...

News

Applications for financial aid lagging among Michigan low-income students

Aug 9, 2020

The economic hardship for low-income families caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may have another casualty: high school seniors accessing financial aid to attend college. Applications for federal and state financial aid for college are a leading...

News

Dean Barr publishes new paper to assist teaching about pandemic financial response

Aug 7, 2020

Michael Barr, Dean of the Ford School, has been observing the financial response to the COVID-19 pandemic closely, as the Fed, the Treasury Department and Congress (especially through the CARES Act) have worked to prop up the economy. To help...

News

Meet our new faculty: Charlotte Cavaillé

Aug 5, 2020

Charlotte Cavaillé is an assistant professor of public policy at the Ford School, who is arriving at the Ford School after a year as a visiting fellow at Princeton University's Center for the Study of Democratic Politics. She comes to the Ford...

News

Did the U.S. economy shrink by 32.9 percent?

Aug 4, 2020

The devastating GDP numbers announced at the end of July—a decline of 9-and-a-half percent—are the worst in American history, according to Ford School economics professor Justin Wolfers. The way the numbers are reported, that at an annualized rate...

News

Collins: If the U.S. economy gets sick, other countries could catch ‘pneumonia’

Aug 4, 2020

A segment on Marketplace on NPR, stated that the U.S. economy contributes more than half of the world’s stock market capitalization, accounts for over 15% of global GDP and is a crucial import market. U-M Provost and Ford School economics professor...

Shortage of coins affects lower-income consumers - Harris

Jul 30, 2020

An article in the Los Angeles Times on July 30, states that "the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a coin shortage, and it’s hitting small-business owners, big retailers and everyday shoppers — especially those who don’t have credit or debit cards — in...

News

New Faculty Funding Opportunity for Action-Based Research to Combat and Confront Racism

Jul 30, 2020

Poverty Solutions and the Center for Social Solutions announce the inaugural faculty grants competition to pursue action-based research aimed at ending systemic and institutional racism. The awards, which range from $10,000 to $50,000, are open to...

Alumni spotlight

Alan Cohen (MPP ‘75) improves U.S. social security under 7 administrations

Jul 27, 2020

Alan Cohen (MPP '75) has led an impressive career in social security policy, means-tested programs, and federal budget policy. Working for both the executive and legislative branches, Cohen has transformed aspects of social security, means-tested...

Alumni spotlight

DiGiovanni (MPP ‘00) emphasizes the critical role of budgeting in policymaking

Jul 21, 2020

After being awarded a Presidential Management Fellowship with the State Department, Antony DiGiovanni (MPP '00) didn’t expect his career trajectory would focus on federal budgeting. When explaining to a prospective employer he was interested in...

News

Local leaders' mixed messages and fading outlook in annual Michigan Public Policy Survey

Jul 20, 2020

Michigan local government officials’ attitudes about the direction of the state, and the performances of the governor and the legislature have improved from last year, but remain more negative than positive. The 2020 Michigan Public Policy Survey...

News

“Promise Kept” on Trump tariff threat - Deardorff

Jul 20, 2020

Alan Deardorff, Ford School professor and one of the world’s leading experts on international trade policy, was referenced in a Politifact “Trump-O-Meter” fact-check of Trump Administration policy promises. The stated policy: “Any country that...

Alumni spotlight

Steve Tobocman (MPP/JD ‘97) advocates for immigrant economic inclusion

Jul 20, 2020

Steve Tobocman (MPP/JD '97) has been a leading advocate for immigrant inclusion in Detroit over the past two decades. After serving in Michigan’s House of Representatives for six years–his final term as the second highest ranking legislator–he...

News

Combating poverty and inequality amidst a pandemic

Jul 19, 2020

Ford School Dean Michael S. Barr, Associate Dean and Poverty Solutions Director Luke Shaefer and Alford A. Young Jr., Professor of Sociology and African and African American Studies and courtesy faculty at the Ford School, discussed some of the ways...

Luke Shaefer, Michael Barr, and Al Young

News

Making sense of the complex unemployment numbers

Jul 10, 2020

On July 2nd, the Labor Department reported that 4.8 million jobs had been added, and unemployment stood at 11% - still higher than it was at the peak of the Great Recession in 2008 — with 17.8 million Americans still out of work. Ford School...

News

U-M awards grants to address poverty, impact of COVID-19 across Midwest

Jul 9, 2020

The Midwest Mobility from Poverty Network, led by Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan, awarded six grants totaling $150,000 for projects to improve economic mobility and address the impact of COVID-19 throughout the Midwest. The grant...

News

"Planet Money Summer School " features Stevenson and Wolfers

Jul 7, 2020

Planet Money, the irreverent and informative NPR podcast, is convening a Summer School starting on July 8, “turning it's podcast feed into a classroom for the masses, for anyone who wants to see the world through the lens of an economist.” Ford...

News

Dodd-Frank achievements assessed on its 10th anniversary

Jul 2, 2020

The Center on Finance, Law and Policy co-hosted a day-long conference with the Brookings Institution on June 30 to mark the Dodd-Frank Act 10th Anniversary. Former Senator Chris Dodd and former Representative Barney Frank participated, as did...

Politicians gather around President Obama as he signs the Dodd Frank Act

News

Democracy & Debate Theme Semester launches

Jul 2, 2020

This week marks the launch of the Democracy & Debate Theme Semester, a unique opportunity for teaching and learning about free speech and the exchange of ideas, democratic engagement from a global perspective and what it means to be a member of a...

News

Stevenson comments on lagging summer job creation lags, effect of expanded earned income tax credit

Jul 1, 2020

Ford School economics professor Betsey Stevenson was featured on NPR’s Marketplace, which noted that, “Summer has arrived; lots of summer jobs have not.” This year is going to be tough on people who work in travel, tourism and restaurants, which...

News

Federal Reserve stress test results “backward-looking” - Barr

Jun 30, 2020

The Federal Reserve undertook its annual stress tests for the 34 largest US banks on Thursday, June 25, and determined to require big banks to suspend share repurchases during the third quarter and limit dividend distributions to the levels banks...

News

Unemployment remains steadily high in Detroit

Jun 30, 2020

As everyday activities in Detroit begin to resume, four out of 10 working Detroiters remain temporarily or permanently laid off, and many residents say they feel the state is reopening too soon. According to the third rapid response COVID-19...