News | Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

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Government suspicion, conspiratorial thinking linked to historical harm in 3 Michigan communities, U-M report finds

Feb 20, 2025

More than half of residents surveyed in three Michigan communities believe significant events occur without public knowledge—a sentiment of government suspicion closely tied to conspiratorial thinking, according to a University of Michigan policy...

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Atran on the future of Gaza, from Gazans

Feb 19, 2025

In a new article published in Foreign Affairs, Scott Atran and co-author Ángel Gómez shine a light on Gazans’ views, highlighting a complicated picture of postwar Gaza. Support for Hamas among Gazans has declined, however alternatives to the group’s...

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US Department of Education's role in K-12 education, funding local schools: U-M experts can discuss

Feb 14, 2025

As federal policymakers consider the future of the U.S. Department of Education, a new interactive data tool from Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan shows the allocation of federal education funds to local school districts – making the...

Photo of kids running outside a school bus

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Lantz named to prestigious commission to address U.S. societal resilience

Feb 14, 2025

Paula Lantz, James B. Hudak Professor of health Policy, has been named to a new commission convened by the prestigious medical journal The Lancet. The commission is tasked with recommending how to enable communities to prepare for, resist, and...

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2025 DC trip boosts alumni connections and career insights for students

Feb 13, 2025

The DC career exploration trip, a long-standing annual tradition organized by the Ford School's Career Services, took place on February 6 and 7. This year’s trip saw over 80 graduate and undergraduate students—the largest group of student...

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STPP partnership selected for competitive Strava program to shape the future of active transportation

Feb 13, 2025

An initiative from the Ford School's Science, Technology, and Public Policy (STPP) program was among 10 global projects selected by Strava, the popular ride and run tracking app, for its inaugural Metro for Academic Researchers Program....

Photo of group riding bicycles down a neighborhood street.

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Under Trump, "Laws Are Just Vibes", says Moynihan

Feb 10, 2025

"On Friday, the administration announced that it would cap the overhead, or “indirect” rates, that the National Institutes of Health allows on its grants to universities," writes Ford School professor Don Moynihan in an essay published by The...

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Rx Kids celebration in the news as it expands to Kalamazoo

Feb 9, 2025

More than 1,300 babies and families in the city of Flint have received nearly $6 million in cash prescriptions since Rx Kids launched in January 2024. A birthday bash complete with cupcakes, coloring pages, and other birthday fun, was held Jan. 29...

Adult kissing a baby on the cheek, the baby is holding a teddy bear and wearing a floral headband.

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Shaefer's Rx Kids program celebrates nearly $6M distributed to Flint families in 1st year

Feb 7, 2025

Rx Kids, co-directed by the Ford School's Luke Shaefer, celebrated it one-year anniversary at the end of January. The program has given access to $6M in cash support for over 1,300 Flint families with pregnant mothers and babies in their first years...

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Immigration policies: U-M experts can discuss

Feb 6, 2025

Immigration continues to be a priority in U.S. politics, with the federal government intensifying enforcement efforts through large-scale raids and with the transfer of certain detained migrants to Guantanamo Bay. These actions have fueled ongoing...

Mara Ostfeld speaking at a Poverty Solutions event.

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Hudak (MPP '71) wins U-M's Hermelin Award for service to the Ford School

Feb 6, 2025

Longtime benefactor Jim Hudak (MPP ‘71) has been recognized as one of the University of Michigan’s most dedicated fundraising volunteers with the 2024 David B. Hermelin Award for Fundraising Volunteer Leadership. Hudak is one of five recipients this...

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Pilkauskas inducted to the National Academy of Social Insurance

Feb 5, 2025

Natasha Pilkauskas, associate professor of public policy at the Ford School, is one of 64 experts who were inducted into the National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI) this year. Approved by the NASI Board of Directors last week, Pilkauskas is...

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Viewing Asilomar from the Global South

Jan 31, 2025

Fifty years ago, the Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA convened 140 life scientists from the U.S. and the UK to anticipate potential risks in the emerging biotechnology field to help inform rules and regulations. The conference was celebrated...

Professor Shobita Parthasarathy leads a discussion in the Betty Ford Classroom

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Bagenstos gives insider perspective on Trump’s federal funding freeze

Jan 31, 2025

Returning Ford School Professor Sam Bagenstos, Arlene Susan Kohn Professor of Social Policy, is uniquely qualified to comment on the Trump administration’s attempt to halt all federal spending, having just spent four years in Washington, first as...

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Moynihan offers rapid reaction to new administration’s workforce cut proposals

Jan 31, 2025

Ford School Professor Don Moynihan, an expert in the inner workings of the federal government and how government programs affect the public, was widely sought-after in the first days of the Trump administration, as it laid out its plans to...

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Stevenson's outlook on the economy: tariffs, wages, Fed cuts, the labor market, and more

Jan 31, 2025

The Ford School's economics professor Betsey Stevenson has been discussing her views about the state of the economy to a wide variety of news outlets. Stevenson has looked at tariff increases, the Fed's response to government actions, worker wages,...

Stevensom SRM Subcommittee Hearing Teaser Display

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Odhiambo (BA ‘26) and Loredo-Duran (BA ‘25) win MLK Spirit Award

Jan 29, 2025

Ford School undergraduates Julia Odhiambo (BA ‘26) and Christian Loredo-Duran (BA ‘25) were honored with the 20th annual Central Campus Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Spirit Awards on January 25. The ceremony recognized the various ways...

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Taking bold action toward environmental justice

Jan 29, 2025

A week after the University of Michigan celebrated the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) honored his work at its own event—a panel discussion focused on keeping environmental justice at the...

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U-M faculty examine Trump administration actions pausing loans and grants, firing prosecutors

Jan 28, 2025

EXPERT ADVISORY—Two Ford School experts are available to discuss the Trump administration's efforts to freeze federal loans and grants, firing special employees involved in prosecutions of the president and other actions. Donald Moynihan, is a...

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Transportation insecurity in Detroit and beyond

Jan 24, 2025

Alexandra Murphy discusses why 36% of Detroiters have trouble getting where they need to go and how a new tool could guide better transportation...

Photo of cars and buses driving on a Chicago street as the Metro train passes overhead on an elevated platform

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Nearly half of Michigan law enforcement officials concerned about funding, according to U-M survey

Jan 23, 2025

Among Michigan law enforcement agency leaders, concerns about funding levels are widespread, with almost half of chiefs of police and county sheriffs saying the local governments they serve do not provide sufficient money for their...

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Fixing a broken health care system can help heal ailments, stem frustrations

Jan 20, 2025

Pamela Herd is the Carol Kakalec Kohn professor of social policy at the Ford School of Public Policy and a faculty associate at the Institute for Social Research’s Population Studies Center. Her research focuses on inequality and how it intersects...

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Hanson on Biden's final actions, gridlock in state legislatures, and Trump's business rooted allegiances

Jan 18, 2025

As the United States prepares for President Trump to take office, the Ford School's Jonathan Hanson has been quoted by a number of news outlets searching for insight on recent and upcoming government activity. Hanson spoke with ABC, MPR, and KCBS on...

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Celeste Watkins-Hayes to serve on Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS

Jan 17, 2025

Celeste Watkins-Hayes, the Joan and Sanford Weill Dean of the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, has been invited to serve on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA). This prestigious appointment...

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Camara emphasizes democracy in new collection dedicated to President Mohamed Bazoum

Jan 16, 2025

Ambassador Kamissa Camara, Ford School professor of practice in international diplomacy, has contributed to a newly released book, 25 Letters to President Mohamed Bazoum: Philosopher, Prisoner and Resistance Fighter. The book is a collective work...

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Ford School alumni board welcomes new members

Jan 15, 2025

Six Ford School alumni have been elected to serve on the Alumni Board by their peers. These engaged alumni bring diverse experience working in the public, nonprofit, and private sectors in higher education, housing policy, health reform, and other...

Photo grid of alumni board member headshots

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Greetings from the Dean - The Briefing, January 2025

Jan 15, 2025

Dear friends,Happy New Year! It’s a delight to see Weill Hall bustling with students once again, as classes kicked off last week. The excitement was further amplified by Secretary Pete Buttigieg's visit earlier this week. He delivered an insightful...

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Students simulate creating new affordable housing in 2025 integrated policy exercise

Jan 15, 2025

Detroit, like many U.S. cities, faces a severe affordable housing shortage. According to a recent report by the Detroit Justice Center, the city needs roughly 46,000 more affordable housing units to meet current demand. Against this backdrop, the...

Students in Walter and Leonore Annenberg Auditorium participating in IPE 2025

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Watch What Consumers Do, Not How They Feel - Stevenson

Jan 15, 2025

Ford School professor of public policy and economics Betsey Stevenson writes in Bloomberg about the relationship or lack of relationship between consumer sentiment and economic performance. Instead, she says, we should focus "on consumers' ability...

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With changes in administration, Moynihan comments on the outlook for civil service and Musk's claims of spending cuts

Jan 14, 2025

As Donald Trump prepares to take office, news outlets are turning to the Ford School's Don Moynihan about what's on the horizon for civil servant jobs, and the validity of Elon Musk's claims to cut government spending by 2 trillion. “How the civil...