faculty publications

Publication

Critical tools in preschool program design maximize investments

Jan 13, 2022

As the Biden administration and early childhood advocates across the country push for universal preschool for all three- and four-year-olds, Christina Weiland, professor of education and public policy at the University of Michigan’s Ford School of...

Photo of young children and their teachers in a classroom. By Yan Krukov

Publication

IES Predoctoral Fellows Moffett and Wessiman, Weiland, and colleagues explore effects of pre-k classroom organization

Dec 16, 2021

What are the best ways to judge how instruction in pre-kindergarten classrooms is organized? Linkages between facets of classroom organization such as better organization of materials, smooth transitions, and clear routines are thought to make...

State & Hill

Faculty findings, fall 2021

Dec 13, 2021

Who would pay if we stop using natural gas? New research co-authored by economist Catherine Hausman considers the equity impacts of transitioning from natural gas to other energy sources. According to the U.S. Energy Information...

Yellow gas pipes in natural gas treatment plant

Publication

Earned Income Tax Credit affects intergenerational marriage and childbirth decisions, says U-M study

Dec 3, 2021

Children of Earned Income Tax Credit beneficiaries delayed marriage and first births, according to a new study co-authored by a University of Michigan professor, suggesting the cost-effectiveness of the federal program. Little has been known...

Publication

Supporting 'Preschool for All' in Washington state

Nov 12, 2021

Policy Brief from the University of Michigan’s Education Policy Initiative outlines a vision for high-quality universal preschool in the state of Washington High-quality preschool helps prepare children for kindergarten and promotes their...

Photo of a teacher and three young elementary school students around a classroom table

Publication

Detroiters living in 'substandard conditions,' DMACS study finds

Oct 27, 2021

Almost 40,000 Detroiters live in housing with ongoing and often hazardous maintenance issues, according to a new Detroit Metropolitan Area Community Study issue brief. "Unsurprisingly, the rate of residents living in inadequate or poor-quality...

Photo of homes in Detroit's Chaldean Town neighborhood

Publication

Latino Michiganders: Key findings from U-M Poverty Solutions

Oct 15, 2021

ANN ARBOR—As National Hispanic Heritage Month, which celebrates the culture and contributions of Latinos in the U.S., comes to a close, Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan highlights key data from its research that relates to Latinos...

Publication

Federal unemployment money boosted health care spending

Oct 12, 2021

Emergency federal dollars given to the unemployed during the COVID-19 pandemic bolstered health-care spending as jobless rates skyrocketed, a new University of Michigan study found. But the negative consequences of unemployment and moderating...

Publication

Child Tax Credit providing critical help, but not reaching more than 1 in 10 eligible families

Oct 6, 2021

In March, Congress expanded the Child Tax Credit (CTC) to provide low- and middle-income families with monthly payments of $300 per child under 6 and $250 per child ages 6-17. The expanded CTC is already estimated to have reduced child poverty by...

Publication

Michelmore and Pilkauskas find EITC boosts employment, with decreasing impact as children age

Oct 4, 2021

Existing research has largely overlooked the variation in maternal employment effects of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) depending on the age of their children. In a new study, Katherine Michelmore and Natasha Pilkauskas, both associate...

Natasha Pilkauskas and Katherine Michelmore

Publication

Transitional kindergarten in Michigan: Impacts through elementary school and predictors of a lasting boost

Sep 29, 2021

Access to early education programs have been shown for decades to improve the educational prospects for children in kindergarten and beyond. A new type of early education program widespread in Michigan and California—transitional kindergarten...

Publication

Majority of Detroiters want police reform, many also want increased police presence

Sep 20, 2021

Competing concerns about police brutality and high crime rates are reflected in Detroiters' attitudes toward the police, according to University of Michigan research. A recent U-M survey finds that about 6 in 10 adult Detroit residents believe...

News

Rabe's Brookings blog addresses methane mitigation policy

Sep 16, 2021 Brookings blog

In a recent Brookings blog, Barry Rabe discusses how the federal government may learn from successful state policies to mitigate methane emissions. "Methane appears to be enjoying its 15 minutes of fame—with even more notoriety likely on the...

Publication

A methane fee could be a first and easier step towards a carbon tax - Rabe

Sep 10, 2021

While the United States has been slow to take action on a carbon tax, there may be another avenue that holds promise to curb the emission of an even more potent climate pollutant— a methane tax. In a new Milken Institute article, “Containing Methane...

Publication

EPI study offers deeper dive into demand for educational choices, implications for schools during pandemic

Sep 9, 2021

As school districts consider their options in light of the recent surge in COVID-19 cases, a study by the Education Policy Initiative shows they need to be flexible in offering both in-person and virtual options or risk losing more enrollees. The...

A teacher takes the temperature of a masked young student next to the class blackboard

Publication

Shipan explores how policies spread across the United States in new book

Sep 7, 2021

In his new book, Why Bad Policies Spread (And Good Ones Don’t), Charles R. Shipan, the J. Ira and Nicki Harris Professor of Social Sciences at the University of Michigan, and co-author Craig Volden, professor of public policy and politics at the...

Publication

Should complex, high-stakes government decisions be reliant on predictive algorithms?

Aug 27, 2021

Machine learning is increasingly used for government decision-making to predict adverse outcomes. For instance, many cities and states in the U.S. have adopted pretrial risk assessments that inform decisions about whether to release criminal...

Publication

Hernandez calls for management scholars to focus on inequality

Aug 9, 2021

What role can those who study management play to address systems of inequality? How should the professional community consider the ways in which organizations are designed or evolve to advantage some groups over others? University of Michigan...

News

Rabe salutes rare bipartisan climate cooperation, though less optimistic about future deals

Aug 3, 2021

As part of the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act (AIM Act), the $900 billion pandemic relief bill passed in December 2020, a rare bipartisan initiative to reduce greenhouse gasses was included. It created a significant phase down...

Publication

From birth control to mammograms, many women missed out on preventive care for all of 2020

Jul 18, 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic knocked many women off schedule for important health appointments, a new study finds, and many didn’t get back on schedule even after clinics reopened. The effect may have been greatest in areas where such care is already...

News

YPL report: Pre-COVID, more than half of Detroit students felt anxious or depressed, 1 in 4 considered suicide

Jun 10, 2021

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, serious mental health concerns impacted a significant portion of students in Detroit public schools, a new report shows. More than half of student respondents in the Detroit Public Schools Community District had...

News

‘Transportation is a form of freedom’: How to make it more equitable

Jun 9, 2021

The routes and schedules of public transit, the presence or absence of sidewalks, the availability of different transportation options, and the design of highways that have divided cities—these are examples of aspects of transportation systems that...

Publication

Task force featuring Lantz issues report assessing pandemic's trajectory and implications for Medicare, Social Security

Jun 3, 2021

A report by the National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI) looks at the direct effects and outcomes of COVID-19—hospitalizations, deaths, disability, unemployment, and racial and ethnic disparities—and how they will impact social insurance...

Publication

Barr and collaborators release third edition of Financial Regulation: Law and Policy textbook

May 24, 2021

Ford School Dean Michael S. Barr and his collaborators Howell E. Jackson of Harvard Law School and Margaret E. Tahyar from the law firm of Davis Polk & Wardwell, LLP, have released the third edition of their textbook, Financial Regulation: Law and...

Publication

Tompkins-Stange’s new study highlights crucial role of resources in shaping federal education policy

May 20, 2021

In 2008, Bill Gates gave a speech about how his foundation viewed teacher quality—specifically, separating high-performing teachers from low-performing ones through teacher evaluation—as their most important funding priority. In 2009, the Obama...

Publication

Yang research shows “social norm correction” promotes social distancing

May 19, 2021

African countries are experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases, and the African Center for Disease Control (CDC) is calling on nations to adhere to the basic guidelines of disease containment -- wearing masks and social distancing. The director of the...

Illustrated map of southeastern Africa, highlighting Mozambique in bright maize.

News

Shaefer lauds the potential impact of the child tax credit

May 14, 2021

"The expanded, fully refundable child tax credit sounds complicated, but the ideas behind it are simple, and its design has been tested in many other countries. It’s based on the principles that children deserve the opportunity to thrive, and that...

Publication

Vaccine hesitancy, rooted in institutional mistrust, could stand in way of COVID-19 herd immunity, STPP study finds

May 12, 2021

The global effort to develop and distribute COVID-19 vaccines has progressed despite myriad challenges. Yet the final step—shots in arms—meets resistance among some that can't easily be overcome by science and supply chains. Vaccine hesitancy—a...

A nurse administers the COVID-19 vaccine to a teacher in Iowa (Credit: Phil Roeder / CC BY)

Publication

Study finds even small Medicaid fees can cause high disenrollment

May 10, 2021

A new study co-authored by John Z. Ayanian, director of the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation (IHPI) and Ford School courtesy faculty, warns state and federal governments about implementing cost-sharing requirements for Medicaid...

Publication

Rabe urges Biden administration to address methane reduction

May 9, 2021

"Methane has contributed one-quarter of of global warming to date," Ford School professor Barry Rabe writes in "Thought from Our Fellows" published by the National Academy of Public Administration. "The Biden Administration has an opportunity to...