Catherine (Cat) Summers is a social scientist studying the microfoundations of organizational change. Her research reflects her passion for assisting leaders and organizations in navigating sustainability and justice challenges.
Ligia Ramirez de Reynolds Collegiate Professor of Public Policy; Faculty Director, Leadership Initiative
Hernandez is an internationally recognized scholar with deep expertise in applying behavioral science insights to design and improve organizational systems and decision-making practices. She is widely published in top-tier academic journals and popular media outlets, and serves on several editorial boards. At Michigan, Hernandez teaches courses on leadership and serves as faculty director of the Ford School's Leadership Initiative.
Jennifer Niggemeier brings 20+ years of experience in working with current and future policy leaders. Jennifer leads a global team of 20+ executive leadership coaches delivering individual and group coaching to masters students, and designs and…
Leadership Initiative programs are designed to equip graduate and undergraduate students with the skills and tools needed to effectively lead self, teams, organizations, and communities. Students have opportunities on- and off- campus to develop...
The Leadership Initiative hosts and co-hosts policymakers and other public leaders who shed light on how they responded to adversity, their successes, and even, how they failed. Through the speakers’ stories, students learn how to navigate...
The Leadership Initiative hosts workshops, immersive experiences and talks designed to equip Ford School students with the competencies needed to lead self, others, organizations and communities. Each program or event supports the development of a...
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The Ford School's Leadership Initiative develops and offers a growing suite of graduate and undergraduate student leadership courses, coaching, and extracurricular programs that build on and complement the school's excellent, rigorous curriculum....
As the political polarization in America rises, navigating across differences to find common ground—and policy solutions—has never been more important. This semester, four students—Rebecca Coyne (MPP ‘26), Ella Kinder (BA '25), Breah Marie Willy (BA...
A group of Ford School graduate students were recognized for their research on furthering constructive dialogue as part of the Year of Democracy's three-day symposium to investigate the relationship between information and democracy....
For 25 years, Sue Johnson has been a driving force behind successful fundraising efforts at the University of Michigan, first supporting Rackham Graduate School, then the University’s Museum of Art, and the Law School. Since 2016, the Ford School...
How do future policy leaders learn how to listen thoughtfully, process carefully, and respond empathetically?For several years, the Ford School has hosted public events that bring together speakers who represent different, sometimes conflicting,...
This semester, the Ford School is offering a new course designed to help future public policy professionals master verbal communication skills. It’s led by new lecturer Soojin Kwon, who brings three decades of experience in developing leaders and...
Values are at the heart of leadership, decision making, and organizational culture, but what constitutes a value? How do leaders effectively put them into practice?In an article for MIT Sloan Management Review, leadership experts Morela Hernandez...
Two days of panels, chats, and keynotes focused on examining and seeking solutions to some of the biggest challenges we face in Michigan, in the United States, and across the globe. More than 400 students, faculty, staff, and friends attended in...
In work environments where a four-year degree is the norm, employees who are skilled through alternative routes (STARs), such as apprenticeships or on-the-job training, are less likely to feel like they belong in those environments, contributing to...
Matt Maasdam, a former Navy SEAL and former military aide to President Obama, joined Javed Ali and 15 students for a lunchtime event, “Leadership through Teamwork.” In a lunch-time chat hosted by the Ford School Leadership Initiative, Maasdam shared...
Last fall’s Giving Tuesday campaign raised over $4,500 from 29 donors for the Leadership Initiative (LI). Support for the Leadership Initiative enables students to have access to assessments, workshops, and coaching to increase their self-awareness,...
As policy professionals, Ford School graduates will need to expertly convey new ideas, propose policy to higher ups, lead teams toward a shared goal, build support among factions, present data, and respond to questions ‘on the spot.’ Much like the...
This October, the Ford School’s Leadership Initiative and Career Services team hosted the second annual Deloitte Future of Work Institute (FoWI). Undergraduate students from the Ford School and the U-M Leadership Certificate program participated in...
On an overcast morning in late August, 38 continuing Ford School MPP students gathered in the Dixboro Woods to strategize, communicate, and achieve a shared objective. But it wasn’t to fulfill a consulting project or a problem set. It was part of...
Catherine Summers is a postdoctoral fellow with the Ford School’s Leadership Initiative and the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School. She is an organizational psychologist who is passionate about assisting leaders and...
This spring, the Ford School’s Leadership Initiative tapped into in-house talent to host a series of communication workshops. Former reporter and current MPA student Caroline Sweeney (MPA ‘23) led a workshop series to help her colleagues better...
Many high-achieving employees describe feelings of self-doubt and not being intellectually capable to do their jobs. These feelings can be classified as “imposter syndrome” and it is a persistent issue among career women. A KPMG survey of 750 female...
In 2021, after an initial pilot test, the Ford School became the first policy school to offer all Master of Public Policy students the opportunity to work with a certified executive leadership coach during their required summer internship. In...
In an event on December 5, 2022, Ford School interim dean Celeste Watkins-Hayes told a group of Capitol Hill staffers and other DC professionals that a public policy education can lead to community impact.
“I'm a firm believer in the idea that...
The longer decisions take, the more discomfort they cause us. But in a new article in the MIT Sloan Management Review, Ford School professor Morela Hernandez argues that the more we sit in that discomfort or ambivalence, the better.
“Being...
The Ford School and Jennifer Niggemeier, associate director of the school’s Leadership Initiative, were awarded third prize in the Voinovich Public Innovation Challenge at the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA)...
This fall, the Ford School’s Leadership Initiative is launching a new program for graduate students to learn about different pathways to leadership from Ford School faculty in an intimate, informal setting.
Professor Morela Hernandez, director...
