Poverty Solutions

Pinghui Wu is a postdoctoral research fellow at Poverty Solutions. Her research interests are in employment dynamics, poverty and inequality, and the effects of labor market policies on disadvantaged workers. At Poverty Solutions, she engages in…

Richard Rodems is a postdoctoral fellow with Poverty Solutions, a University of Michigan-wide center housed at the Ford School. His research interests center on poverty, inequality, material hardship, social policy, racial disparities, and the…

Lantz is the associate dean for academic affairs. A social demographer, she studies the role of public policy in improving population health and reducing social disparities in health. Lantz is currently engaged in research regarding the potential for and challenges associated with using social impact bonds to fund public/private partnerships aimed at improving health in low-income populations, including Medicaid beneficiaries.

Parthasarathy studies the governance of emerging science and technology and politics of evidence and expertise in policy in comparative and international perspective. Her current work focuses on the development and implications of COVID-19 testing, and inclusive innovation in international development. She co-hosts The Received Wisdom podcast.

Pilkauskas' research considers how social policy might improve the developmental and life trajectories of low-income children. She has looked at living arrangements of low-income children, especially those who live with grandparents, as well as the role of family/kin transfers in helping families make ends meet; links between maternal employment and school outcomes; the effectiveness of the Earned Income Tax Credit; and the effects of the Great Recession on low-income households.

Shaefer is associate dean for research and policy engagement. He serves as the inaugural director of Poverty Solutions, an interdisciplinary, presidential initiative at U-M that seeks to partner communities and policymakers to find new ways to prevent and alleviate poverty. Shaefer’s research on poverty and social welfare policy in the United States has been published in top peer-reviewed academic journals in the fields of public policy, social work, public health, health services research, and history.

Patrick Cooney (MPP '11) is the assistant director of economic mobility at Poverty Solutions, overseeing the Partnership on Economic Mobility between the University of Michigan and the City of Detroit. In this role, he manages existing projects…