Dr. El-Sayed is a public servant, Michigan politician, former public health professor, and a medical doctor. He served as executive director of the Detroit Health Department and Health Officer for the city from 2015 to 2017, before running for governor of Michigan.
From A.I. to zero emissions
Ford School faculty host and are featured in a variety of podcasts, covering policy topics from artificial intelligence, everyday economics, national security, and more.
My job has always been to demonstrate to...
Weill Hall buzzed with excitement this week as the Ford School kicked off the 41st year of its Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute – a program designed to build diversity in public service. Hailing from coast to...
On May 12, Abdul El-Sayed, the Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence, testified before the U.S. Senate Budget Committee hearing titled “Medicare for All: Protecting Health, Saving Lives, Saving Money.” El-Sayed was...
Abdul El-Sayed, Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence, urges lawmakers to stop making auto insurance double as health insurance in a recent op-ed for Crain's Business Detroit.
"As Michiganders know all too well, we pay more for auto...
Celeste Watkins-Hayes, associate dean for academic affairs and founding director of the Center for Racial Justice, recently appeared on, America Dissected, a podcast hosted by Abdul El-Sayed, former Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence. She...
How are issues of equity addressed in health care innovation and in particular the patent process? Shobita Parthasarathy, professor of public policy and director of the Science, Technology, and Public Policy program, addressed the question on...
The U-M Institute for Clinical & Health Research recognized John Ayanian with a 2020 Distinguished Clinical and Translational Research Mentor Award.
Joshua Basseches received a grant from the Climate Social Science Network to continue working on...
In an announcement this week, Pfizer announced its booster provides increased protection against the omicron COVID-19 variant. Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence and epidemiologist Abdul El-Sayed weighed in on NPR's Here and Now about the...
Updates regarding faculty, staff, and student DEI-related activity at the Ford School
Diversifying what and how we teach
During the November faculty meeting, public policy lecturer Attia Qureshi presented on managing challenges in the...
As Michigan becomes a COVID-19 hotbed, Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence Abdul El-Sayed unpacks what that means knowing what we know in 2021.
El-Sayed appeared on Detroit Today on WDET-FM to unpack what the recent surge in COVID-19...
Abdul El-Sayed, Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence, recently sat down with Stateside to discuss the climate crisis. He reflected on the importance of young people in the movement.
"When we talk about young people and we look at their...
Calling out the hypocrisy of police officers who refuse to get the COVID-19 vaccine, Abdul El-Sayed, Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence, recently wrote an op-ed for the Detroit Metro Times.
In it, he recalls his first "real" interaction...
In an opinion written for the Detroit Free Press, Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence Abdul El-Sayed calls for Congressional policymakers to preserve the water affordability and infrastructure measures included in the Infrastructure...
Michigan Politician, public servant, medical doctor, and former public health professor at Columbia University, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed joins the Ford School this Fall as a Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence. From serving as executive director...
Fall term 2021 will see another packed events calendar, as the Ford School continues to attract some of the most compelling experts and voices from around the world.
In conjunction with the launch of the new Center for Racial Justice, the Racial...
This fall, the Ford School welcomes several new faculty with expertise in education and social policy, national security, and racial justice, and who will help build students’ leadership and negotiation skills. In addition, visiting faculty with...
After the CDC rolled back its guidance that vaccinated people could unmask, many were left confused and unsure of what to believe. Abdul El-Sayed, Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence, explained the logistics behind the new guidance.
"What...
How can we get more people vaccinated? Abdul El-Sayed, Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence, explained that simply yelling at people to get them vaccinated won't work, comparing it to yelling at his toddler to "Go to...
Progressive political leader and public health policy expert Abdul El-Sayed, MD, PhD will join the Ford School faculty in fall 2021 as a Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence. Dr. El-Sayed is a public servant, Michigan politician, former...
Students in Gretchen Whitmer’s winter 2016 seminar on “Running, Serving, and Leading” interviewed a number of thought leaders about policy issues important to Michiganders.
These student podcasts (click on the links below to hear the audio files)...
STPP Lecture Series,
Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation Lecture Series
Join us for a talk on global vaccine equity and health justice with Fatima Hassan, human rights lawyer, social justice activist, and the founder of the Health Justice Initiative in South Africa; and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, Towsley Policymaker in Residence at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.
Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation Lecture Series,
Policy Talks @ the Ford School
Andy Slavitt discusses the mistakes made, the larger picture of healthcare in America, and how to alleviate some of those problems, in conversation with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed.
The series, open to U-M students, faculty, and staff, is designed to foster dialogue on important issues of U.S. public policy. Facilitated by faculty discussant and Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence Abdul El-Sayed, this session focuses on health equity, why it matters, and the role of policy in creating equitable outcomes.
Andy Slavitt, former Biden White House COVID-19 senior advisor and acting CMS administrator, has outlined the mistakes made, the larger picture of healthcare in America, and prescriptions for alleviating some of those problems.
