Public and nonprofit management

In the Media

Shaefer on community violence intervention in Detroit

Mar 6, 2025 Michigan Public

Luke Shaefer, Ford School professor and directory of Poverty Solutions, talked about the community violence intervention program in Detroit called FORCE (Faithfully Organizing Resources for Community Empowerment) as well as others including...

In the Media

Moynihan argues Trump's mass federal layoffs are an assertion of power

Feb 27, 2025 Associated Press

"There’s a fundamental realignment of power here," said Don Moynihan, a public policy professor at the Ford School, commenting on the mass federal firings carried out by the Trump administration. “This administration is saying we have much more...

In the Media

Shaefer's Rx Kids program set to expand to Kalamazoo

Feb 23, 2025 WOOD

Following huge success in its first year, the child healthcare support program Rx Kids is set to expand from Flint into Kalamazoo. Luke Shaefer, professor at the Ford School and the program's co-director stated, "We see families reporting that they...

News

Wolfers counters Musk's claims about about Social Security beneficiaries

Feb 21, 2025

Elon Musk shared on social platform X, that almost 20 million people over age 100, with no death record, were receiving Social Security benefits. The Ford School's Justin Wolfers quickly jumped in to assert the falsehood in Musk's claims.Responding...

In the Media

How government may use AI to determine spending cuts - Moynihan

Feb 18, 2025 Axios

With the emergence of AI as one of the largest technological innovations of the decade, scholars suspect AI will soon be used by the government to determine where to cut funding. "Everyone is excited about the use of AI, and over time it will...

News

Shaefer's Rx Kids program set to expand to the Upper Penninsula

Feb 14, 2025

Rx Kids, the nation’s first-ever citywide cash prescription program for pregnant women and babies, today announced the program’s launch into communities in the Eastern Upper Peninsula (UP). The UP expansion of Rx Kids is made possible by an...

Photo of Luke Shaefer in the Ford School's Towsley Reading Room

In the Media

Hanson comments on the limitations Trump faces on immigration policy

Feb 4, 2025 France Info

Jonathan Hanson, professor at the Ford School, spoke with France Info on the checks and balances that persevere through the Trump administration. "The Trump administration would like local law enforcement to cooperate and identify people who are in...

News

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...

News

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...

News

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...

News

Exciting events at the Ford School this January

Jan 10, 2025

The Ford School is pleased to announce an exciting lineup for our January 2025 Policy Talks @ the Ford School series and other special public events hosted with partners from across campus.Events are free and open to the public unless otherwise...

In the Media

Why Herd says barriers to healthcare access are particularly "frustrating"

Dec 16, 2024 The Seattle Medium

Speaking with The Seattle Medium, Ford School professor Pam Herd stated paperwork and barriers to government benefits are almost always frustrating and painful. “It’s one thing to be frustrated at the DMV because you have a ton of paperwork to fill...

News

Rx Kids shows promising results after its first year

Dec 9, 2024

Since its start in January of 2024, Rx Kids has been a lifesaver for young families in Flint Michigan. The program was co-founded by the Ford School's Luke Shaefer and provides Flint residents with $1,500 mid-pregnancy, and $500 each month for the...

In the Media

Moynihan pushes for human centered design in digital benefit distribution systems

Sep 18, 2024 State Scoop

Recent efforts to alleviate consumer burden have been made within states by enhancing their digital systems used to distribute government benefits. With these efforts, Donald Moynihan argues for a system that focuses on reducing "administrative...

Publication

More Michigan communities developing renewable energy goals, CLOSUP survey finds

Jul 17, 2024

The percentage of Michigan local governments that say they have or are considering renewable energy goals has doubled since 2019.Local officials also report that a variety of energy issues, such as energy infrastructure zoning and planning for...

Publication

More local officials see relevance of electric vehicle planning

May 2, 2024

Local officials across Michigan increasingly view electric vehicle infrastructure planning as relevant for their governments, though many cite too few public charging stations and costs associated with adding them as barriers to expansion.The...

Gray Electric Car Parked on a Charging Bay

News

Stacey Abrams, other policymakers and leading scholars to join Ford School symposium

Mar 12, 2024

The Ford School of Public Policy is happy to announce the Dean’s Symposium, which will take place April 11 and 12 at Weill Hall, with the theme, “Policy Innovation for Our Times.” The two days will feature keynote appearances by voting rights...

News

Challenges continue for state-local relations, according to Michigan local government leaders

Nov 10, 2023

Over half of Michigan local officials currently rate their jurisdiction’s overall relationship with the State government as just fair or even poor, while 34% of local officials say it is either good or excellent. It is an important relationship...

News

Owen-Smith gets grant to help measure public investments in emerging industries

Nov 6, 2023

The Institute for Research on Innovation and Science (IRIS) has received a $4.5 million federal grant to study how public investments in emerging industries can impact economic development in key technological areas. Jason Owen-Smith, executive...

News

Michigan’s smaller local governments need help accessing state and federal grants

Oct 11, 2023

As unprecedented state and federal funding opportunities have emerged over the past 18 months with the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, Michigan local government leaders have expressed their concern...

Publication

Housing shortages across Michigan alarming local leaders - Michigan survey

Sep 14, 2023

Michigan local officials are reporting alarm at the lack of housing options across the state. Those concerns include single-family homes and multi-family units, and cut across affordable, entry-level and mid-level housing availability. The...

News

Meet our new faculty: Devin Judge-Lord

Sep 14, 2023

Political scientist Devin Judge-Lord focuses on how public pressure campaigns affect agency rulemaking, especially those concerning climate and environmental justice issues. He also researches legislator behavior and capacity, the role of money in...

News

Ford School teams receive Boost support from U-M Bold Challenges Initiative

Sep 6, 2023

Three research teams with Ford School affiliations have been selected among eight programs across the U-M campus to participate in the first cycle of the Bold Challenges Initiative's newly-launched Boost program. The Boost program supports new...

Publication

Mapping poverty in America: Shaefer’s new book explores “The Injustice of Place”

Aug 3, 2023

America is rife with "internal colonies," where systemic violence, resource extraction, and corruption among decision makers have contributed to generations of poverty and disadvantage. These communities suffer from environmental degradation, lack...

News

PPIA students reflect on their summer of study and social life

Aug 2, 2023

What are the dynamics of inequity in labor markets? How do we determine appropriate categories for people in a multicultural society? How is the U.S. approach to ethnicity and nationality different from what they are doing in Europe? These were...

Group of PPIA students posing in front of Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy courtyard

News

Michigan local government leaders’ views on their employee unions: few changes in relationships or impacts as Right-to-Work comes and goes

Jul 26, 2023

Pluralities of local government leaders across Michigan say the state’s recently repealed "Right-to-Work" law had no impact on issues such as community business growth, the ability of their local government to lure or keep public sector employees,...

News

CLOSUP and Poverty Solutions to examine Michigan’s approach to criminal justice reform

Jul 20, 2023

In the wake of racial justice movements across the country, the State of Michigan and some of its communities have been implementing new public safety and criminal justice policies. The perspective of Michigan's local government, public safety, and...

News

Leiser and Shaefer comment on Detroit bankruptcy anniversary

Jul 18, 2023

As the city of Detroit marked the 10th anniversary of its declaration of bankruptcy, publications took stock of the progress the city has made. Bloomberg quoted the Center for Local, State and Urban Policy’s (CLOSUP) Stephanie Leiser, who leads...

News

Engaged Learning Student Projects Catalog: Preparing Ford School students for leadership

Jun 29, 2023

During the Winter Term 2023, Ford School students were involved in projects with federal, state, county, city, and township governments, school districts, non-profit organizations, and commissions. They worked with the school’s numerous research...

Weill Hall entrance with "Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy" etched into the glass

In the Media

DNEP tech worker training saluted in Detroit Free Press

May 26, 2023 Detroit Free Press

Detroit Free Press: A unique free program that pairs college students and professionals with Detroit small business owners in need of digital and other skills is getting results. Since the start of the Community Tech Workers program, 135 micro...