SPP Brochure 8-04 - Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy ...

ABOUT THE SCHOOL 11Research CentersThe Ford School is home to several major researchcenters focusing on policy issues. All are collaborativeefforts involving faculty from across the U-Mcampus and reflecting the strong commitment to interdisciplinarywork found on campus. Ford School faculty andstudents are affiliated with each center through researchprojects, courses, and informal discussion groups. Moreinformation about each of these centers is available atwww.fordschool.umich.edu/research.Center for Local, State, and Urban PolicyEstablished in 1999, the Center’s mission is to foster society’sunderstanding of the policy issues facing states, cities,and metropolitan areas and to seek effective solutions tothem. Recent research at the Center has focused on landuse and on privatization of public services.National Poverty CenterFunded by the U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices, the NPC fosters multi-disciplinary research onpoverty and poverty-related policy in the United States,trains researchers, and disseminates its findings to thepolicy and research communities.Nonprofit and Public Management CenterNPM is focused on improving education and research onthe management of public and nonprofit organizations.It provides training to professional school students whoplan careers in this field or who anticipate substantialinvolvement through volunteer service to nonprofits andit conducts research on the distinctive roles and contributionsof the nonprofit sector.Research and Training Program on Povertyand Public PolicyThe program provides the opportunity for one to twoyears of research and extensive training at the Universityof Michigan to outstanding American scholars who aremembers of groups that are underrepresented in thesocial sciences (e.g. members of racial and ethnic minoritygroups, individuals from socio-economically disadvantagedbackgrounds, etc.) The program is made possible bygrants from the Ford Foundation.Michigan Program on Poverty andSocial Welfare PolicySince its creation in 1995, this program has worked topromote interdisciplinary research on the effects ofpoverty on families and communities, to evaluate welfarereform, examine the practices of social service agencies,and share findings with researchers and public policydecision-makers.“I came to the Ford Schoolbecause of its strength inquantitative analysis. I haverealized that not only haveI developed this skill setthrough work with my professors, but I havegained vast knowledge and skills from my classmateswho come from many diverse careers andbackgrounds. I can see, in my internship withthe City of Detroit, how useful the skills I haveobtained, both inside the classroom and frommy peers, are in the real world of policymaking.”— Romonda McKinney, MPP 2005F ORD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY