Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professorship of Social Justice and Social Policy

The Ford School's Luke Shaefer spoke with CBS Detroit on the federal government shutdown's impact on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).  "There are senior citizens, millions of senior citizens, millions of families with kids who ar...

EXPERTS ADVISORY University of Michigan experts are available to discuss the impact of a potential halt in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funding due to the federal government shutdown. A directive from the U.S. Department of Agriculture h...

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 at...

Six years ago, Harold and Carol Kohn approached the Ford School with a vision. Their goal was to help build a vibrant research community dedicated to promoting social equity and inclusion. Today, the Kohn Collaborative for Social Policy is poised to ...

On December 10, Kohn Professor Luke Shaefer testified before the Michigan State Senate Committee on Housing and Human Services about a new state-level paid family leave program. Shaefer pointed to a recent study by University of Michigan Poverty Solu...

On Wednesday, Nov. 13, advocates and experts held a virtual press conference highlighting the benefits that a statewide paid family and medical leave program would have for Michiganders and the importance of passing the Michigan Family Leave Optimal ...

Ford School professor Luke Shaefer’s book, The Injustice of Place: Uncovering the Legacy of Poverty in America (Harper Collins, August 2023) is the recipient of the 2023 Richard A. Lester Book Award at Princeton University. Shaefer, the Hermann and A...

Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan last year informed the largest-ever increase in state funding for youth homelessness programs, advised federal policymakers on place-based strategies for tackling poverty and laid the groundwork for inn...

A place-based view of the legacy of poverty in the U.S. At first glance, there's not much in common among the spinach fields of Crystal City, Texas; the cotton mills near Greenwood, Mississippi; and the historic salt works in Manchester, Kentucky....

In a new commentary, Luke Shaefer, Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy, and Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, an MSU professor of public health, call on Congress to do one last thing in their lame duck session: renew the expan...

A new data map displaying a variety of poverty and well-being metrics across Michigan holds implications for how federal American Rescue Plan Act funds could be used to address the state’s most pressing needs. Poverty Solutions at the University ...

In Atlanta, a pilot basic income program is being rolled out. Luke Shaefer, Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy, discussed his thoughts on basic income.  "(Policymakers need to ask) would people be better off jus...

The University of Michigan is honoring faculty members Ford School associate dean H. Luke Shaefer and Marisa C. Eisenberg with presidential awards for public engagement, recognizing their contributions to significantly impact society and address the ...

The Ford School of Public Policy is a top-ranked public policy school dedicated to preparing diverse leaders to take on society’s most pressing challenges and make transformational discoveries through cutting-edge research. Experts from the Ford Scho...

How Kohn Professor Luke Shaefer and the pandemic paved the way for an expanded Child Tax Credit By Lauren Slagter The passage of the American Rescue Plan Act in March ushered in a "euphoric" couple of weeks for Luke Shaefer, the Hermann and Am...

Associate Dean for Research and Policy Engagement Luke Shaefer delivered the inaugural Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professorship in Social Policy and Social Justice Lecture. Shaefer, who also serves as faculty director of Poverty Solutions, is the first ...

Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) has suggested that lawmakers pick just one of the family policies in the safety net spending bill. The New York Times asked Luke Shaefer which one he would choose. "The child tax credit is elegant in that it does someth...

A set of gifts totaling $17 million from the Kohn Charitable Trust will establish a resource hub at the University of Michigan's Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy to catalyze interdisciplinary research on policy that promotes social equity and i...

With widespread shutdowns of businesses across the country due to COVID-19, states have seen a dramatic rise in the number of unemployed and those seeking unemployment benefits. This week, unemployment claims jumped 2000% in Michigan, putting the sta...

By Mandira Banerjee | Originally published by Michigan News, December 6, 2018  ANN ARBOR—A $2.5 million gift by the Kohn Charitable Trust to the University of Michigan will establish a new professorship of social justice and social policy at the ...

 Dr. Harold Kohn's grandparents, Hermann and Amalie Kohn, were from the Lower Franconia district of Bavaria in Germany. They and their ancestors had lived there since the 1750s.  Hermann Kohn was born on April 2, 1871, in Lulsfeld, and Amalie (nee Sc...