CLOSUP - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Professor at the Ford School of Public
Barry Rabe is the J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Professor of Public Policy and the Arthur Thurnau Professor of Environmental Policy. He was the director of CLOSUP from 2013-2019. During his time as director, CLOSUP launched the Energy and Environmental Policy Initiative (EEPI) including the National Surveys on Energy and Environment, the Renewable Energy Policy Initiative (REPI), and the CLOSUP in the Classroom (CITC) initiative. He is also currently a CLOSUP faculty affiliate.
Barry Rabe, professor at the Ford School of Public Policy, says that economists widely agree that introducing a carbon price is the single most effective way for countries to reduce their emissions, but political barriers have deterred elected off
Barry Rabe is the J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Professor of Public Policy at the Ford School. He is also the Arthur Thurnau Professor of Environmental Policy, with courtesy appointments in the Program in the Environment, the Department of Political…
Bonnie joined CLOSUP in August 2008. She is responsible for coordinating various events and projects, as well as office and grant administration. She has a B.S. in Urban and Regional Planning from Eastern Michigan University. Before joining CLOSUP, Bonnie was the Program Administrator for the Science, Technology, and Public Policy (STPP) Program, and Program Administrator and Events Manager for the UM Labor Studies Center at the Institute for Labor and Industrial Relations.
Brian Jacob is the Walter H. Annenberg Professor of Education Policy, professor of economics, co-director of the Education Policy Initiative and Youth Policy Lab, and director of the Ford School's doctoral program. He was the director of CLOSUP from 2008-2013. During his time as director, CLOSUP launched the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), the Education Policy Initiative (EPI), and saw a major expansion of the CLOSUP events series. In 2012, the EPI became a stand-alone research center under the directorship of Professors Susan Dynarski and Brian Jacob.
Job Titles:
- Senior Program Manager
- Research Area Specialists
Debra joined CLOSUP in 2008, helped design and launch the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS), and serves as the senior program manager for the MPPS. In addition to her work at CLOSUP, Debra has been a regular lecturer in U-M's Political Science…
Job Titles:
- Policy Analyst
- Research Assistant With CLOSUP 's Michigan Local Recycling Policy Project
- Student Policy Analysts
Deven is a Research Assistant with CLOSUP's Michigan Local Recycling Policy Project. He is an undergraduate student (Class of 2025) majoring in Public Policy with a minor in Energy Science and Policy. Deven is most interested in sustainability management and energy policy.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Professor of Political Science and Director, Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion
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Dr. Christopher P. Borick is a Professor of Political Science and Director of the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion. He is a nationally recognized public opinion researcher who has conducted over 300 large-scale public opinion surveys during the past two decades. The results of these surveys have appeared in numerous periodicals including The Wall St Journal, New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Washington Post. He has also provided analysis for the BBC, National Public Radio, PBS, MSNBC, CBS News and NBC Nightly News and had his survey results aired on, CNN, FOX News and C-Span. During his career he has conducted surveys for a variety of government agencies and organizations including the Center for Disease Control, PBS, The Wisconsin Department of Commerce, the Oneida Indian Nation, The U.S. Department of Labor, and Habitat for Humanity. He is co director of the National Surveys on Energy and the Environment (NSEE) and currently conducts surveys for the Morning Call newspaper in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He has served as President of both the Wisconsin Political Science Association and the Pennsylvania Political Science Association.
Professor Borick received his undergraduate education at The Pennsylvania State University and a Masters Degree from East Stroudsburg University. He completed his doctoral work at The State University of New York at Binghamton in the area of public policy. He has government experience at both the federal and local levels, including positions with the Internal Revenue Service and Monroe County Pennsylvania Planning Commission. He has published over thirty articles and four books in the area of public policy, public opinion and environmental policy, and has held teaching positions at The State University of New York at Cortland, St. Norbert College, Lehigh University and currently at Muhlenberg College. He has won numerous teaching and advising awards during his career, most recently receiving The Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award at Muhlenberg College. He and his wife Lisa reside in Nazareth, Pennsylvania with their two children: Sam who is nineteen and John who is fifteen.
Job Titles:
- Director of Poverty Solutions
Dr. Mara Cecilia Ostfeld is the associate faculty director of Poverty Solutions, the research director at the Center for Racial Justice, and an assistant research scientist in the Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. In…
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science
- Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science at Eastern
- Assistant Professor of Political Science
Dr. Shu Wang is an assistant professor at the Department of Political Science at Eastern Michigan University. Prior to her appointment at EMU, she was an assistant professor at Michigan State University where she taught classes in policy analysis and public management. In addition to teaching, she also led and engaged in various outreach programs with MSU Extension for local communities that aim to strengthen local governance.
She has a PhD in Public Administration from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a Masters in Public Administration from Columbia University. Her research examines the impacts of fiscal federalism in the United States and its impacts on local revenue structure, fiscal condition, and service delivery. Her recent projects investigates intra-metropolitan resilience between municipalities and inter-local collaboration for climate change actions.
Job Titles:
- Associate Dean
- Professor of Public Policy at the Ford School
Elisabeth Gerber is the associate dean for research and policy engagement and the Jack L. Walker, Jr. Professor of Public Policy at the Ford School. She was the founding director of CLOSUP, from 2001-2006. During her time as director, CLOSUP conducted research projects including the Growth Management Study and co-directed the Michigan at the Millenium project. CLOSUP also launched the grant programs: the CLOSUP Major Projects Program and the Small Grants Program, which sponsored over 50 research projects at the University of Michigan, and also launched the CLOSUP Events Series. She is also currently a CLOSUP faculty affiliate.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor of Political Science at the University
- Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Montreal
Erick Lachapelle is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Montreal (officially known as l'Université de Montréal). He holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Toronto, and is the principal investigator for the Canadian Surveys on Energy and Environment (CSEE). Broadly focused on issues surrounding energy and the environment, his work examines the interactions among media, public opinion, and public policy.
Job Titles:
- Policy Analyst
- Policy Analyst for CLOSUP 's Local Fiscal Health Project
- Student Policy Analysts
Farah is a Policy Analyst for CLOSUP's Local Fiscal Health Project. She is an incoming masters student at the Ford School (Class of 2025) and has a B.S. degree in BHS and political science from the University of Michigan College of Literature, Science and the Arts in 2022. She is interested in state and local government, social policy, and health policy with aims to reduce inequality and promote access to resources.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor of Practice at the George
- Assistant Professor of Practice at the George V. Voinovich School of Leadership
Gilbert Michaud, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Practice at the George V. Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs at Ohio University. His research focuses on renewable energy policy, electric utilities, and economic and workforce development, and he has led several projects funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Small Business Administration, and American Electric Power, among others. For his applied work portfolio, Dr. Michaud was awarded a faculty sustainability research award from Ohio University's Office of Sustainability, as well as a Midwest Energy News 40 Under 40 award, both in 2018. In 2019, he won the "Best Article of the Year" Award from the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) for his paper, "Non-utility photovoltaic deployment: Evaluation of U.S. state-level policy drivers."
Michaud has published numerous academic articles in peer-reviewed journals, is author or co-author of over 80 white paper reports and commentary articles, and has been quoted in several news media outlets, including NPR, Bloomberg Law, S&P Global, and WalletHub. He holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration from the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University, as well as an advanced certificate in Data Analytics from Cornell University.
Job Titles:
- Policy Analyst
- Research Assistant
- Student Policy Analysts
Ishan is a research assistant working with coding public comments from recent Michigan elections for CLOSUP and MICRC. He is a junior in the BA program at the Ford School working towards a focus area of data analysis with an emphasis on urban policy as well as a minor in the School of Information in User Experience. He is interested in utilizing data to improve policy shortcomings and increase social equity.
Job Titles:
- Lecturer in Political Science Principal and Owner of River Park Consultancy, LLC
- Principal and Owner of River Park Consultancy
James L. Tatum III is the Principal and Owner of River Park Consultancy, LLC. Previously, he served as an analyst in the City of Detroit's Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) where he prepared cost benefit analyses of City projects, asset sales and labor contracts, forecasted city revenues and expenditures, and conducted complex scenario analyses for the City's pension plans. In addition to his practical experience, he is an accomplished academic. His research on debt, pensions, insolvency, Chapter 9 bankruptcy, and dissolution has been published in trade, law, and academic journals.
Job Titles:
- Professor
- Professor of Public Policy and Political Scienc
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Jenna Bednar is a professor of public policy and political science at the University of Michigan and a member of the external faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. Professor Bednar's research is on the analysis of institutions, focusing on the theoretical underpinnings of the stability of federal states. Her most recent book, The Robust Federation: Principles of Design, demonstrates how complementary institutions maintain and adjust the distribution of authority between national and state governments. This book makes two theoretical contributions to the study of federalism's design. First, it shows that distributions suggested by a constitution mean nothing if the governments have no incentive to abide by them, and intergovernmental retaliation tends to be inefficient. The book's second contribution is that while no institutional safeguard is sufficient to improve the union's prosperity, institutions work together to improve compliance with the distribution of authority, thereby boosting the union's performance.
Generally, her work seeks to answer questions such as: Why does the federal government take advantage of state governments? Why are some federations stable, despite frequent episodes of intergovernmental tension? Can the court effectively referee federalism disputes if it makes mistakes or is biased in favor of one government?
Professor Bednar is also interested in constitutions: specifically, the potential that constitutional design has to affect the behavior of heterogeneous populations with decentralized governmental structures.
Educational Background
PhD in political science, Stanford University
MA in political science, Stanford University
BA in political science, University of Michigan
Job Titles:
- Ford School Professor Emeritus
- Professor
- Professor Emeritus of Public Policy, Gerald R Ford School of Public Policy, Professor Emeritus of Political Science, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts
John Chamberlin, Ford School professor emeritus of public policy and political science, says a recent controversy in Lansing calls out the need for increased transparency when it comes to lawmakers. A Michigan state representative is proposing a law...
John R. Chamberlin is a professor emeritus of political science and public policy. His research interests include ethics and public policy, professional ethics, and methods of election and representation. He taught the core course "Values, Ethics, and Public Policy" at the Ford School. He was the founding director of the Ford School's BA in Public Policy program from 2007-2011 and the director of U-M's Center for Ethics in Public Life from 2008-2011. John has a BS in industrial engineering from Lehigh University and a PhD in decision sciences from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor of Public Policy
- Associate Professor of Public Policy at the Ford School
- Associate Professors
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Kaitlin Raimi is an associate professor of public policy at the Ford School. As a social/environmental psychologist, her interests center on how individuals can promote or prevent sustainable behaviors and policies. She has three broad areas of research: (1) how people compare their own beliefs and behaviors to others, (2) how adopting one pro-environmental behavior affects later action, and (3) how climate change communication affects people's understanding, behaviors, and support for climate policies and technologies. Before joining the Ford School completed a PhD in social psychology from Duke University and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Vanderbilt Institute for Energy & Environment.
Job Titles:
- Policy Analyst
- Student Policy Analysts
Lizett is a Policy Analyst supporting CLOSUP's Michigan Redistricting Project. She is a masters student at the Ford School (Class of 2024), and has a B.A. degree in History with minors in Labor and Workplace Studies and Chicana/o Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles. She is interested in social policy in the US, specifically in reducing socioeconomic disparities among disadvantaged communities.
Job Titles:
- Policy Analyst
- Research Assistant for CLOSUP 's Redistricting Project
Malak is a research assistant for CLOSUP's Redistricting Project working to code data submitted to the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (MICRC). She is a junior at the Ford School majoring in public policy and minoring in…
Job Titles:
- Research and Data Specialist
Margaret joined CLOSUP as our research and data specialist in September 2023, after having worked at the Center as a student policy analyst during her master's program in the Ford School. During her studies, Margaret worked on CLOSUP's Fiscal Health…
Job Titles:
- Administrative Coordinator
- Project Coordinator
- Administrative Coordinator / Project Coordinator for the Weiser Diplomacy Center
- Administrative Coordinator / Project Coordinator, Weiser Diplomacy Center, Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy
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Mariam Negaran is the Administrative Coordinator/Project Coordinator for the Weiser Diplomacy Center and Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy Program. She also supports the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Associate Dean for Research and Policy Engagement. Prior to joining the Ford School, Mariam worked in student services at the International Programs in Engineering at the College of Engineering and the Department of Film, Television, and Media and LSA Honors Program at the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA) at the University of Michigan.
Mariam earned her BA in Journalism and Mass Communication & Spanish from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Areas of Expertise
Event planning and coordination
Job Titles:
- Policy Analyst
- Student Policy Analysts
Michael is a research assistant for Democracy & Debate, a university-wide educational initiative. He is a bachelors of business administration student at the Ross School (Class of 2025), concentrating in business economic and public policy. Michael…
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Barry Rabe is the J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Professor of Public Policy at the Ford School. He is also the Arthur Thurnau Professor of Environmental Policy, with courtesy appointments in the Program in the Environment, the Department of Political Science, and the School for Environment and Sustainability. Rabe examines the political feasibility and durability of environmental and energy policy, with a particular emphasis on efforts to address climate change in the United States and other nations. This includes ongoing study of the conditions under which political systems are capable of adopting market-based carbon pricing policies such as carbon taxes or cap-and-trade, as examined in his 2018 book Can We Price Carbon? (MIT Press). Rabe emphasizes the need for considering a policy life-cycle analysis, moving beyond initial adoption to consider longer-term implementation questions, including performance and equity.
Rabe's research regularly considers political and policy issues in the context of federalism, including his 2020 Brookings Institution Press book, Trump, the Administrative Presidency, and Federalism, co-authored with Frank Thompson and Kenneth Wong. This book examines the Obama and Trump presidencies, considering their heavy reliance on executive actions across multiple policy areas and the ability of state coalitions to lead effective efforts to thwart them. Federalism also looms large in many of his previous publications, including such books as Greenhouse Governance (Brookings, 2010), Statehouse and Greenhouse (Brookings, 2004), Beyond NIMBY (Brookings, 1994), and When Federalism Works (Brookings, 1986).
Rabe in recent years has joined the venerable team of Norman Vig and Michael Kraft as a co-editor of one of the leading environmental politics and policy textbooks. Their latest edition of Environmental Policy: New Directions for the Twenty-First Century was published by CQ/SAGE Press in 2021. The book is used widely in undergraduate and graduate courses around the United States.
He is the recipient of four American Political Science Association awards in honor of his research and publications. This includes the 2017 Martha Derthick Award in recognition of the book on federalism and intergovernmental relations that has had an enduring impact for more than a decade. This award recognized Statehouse and Greenhouse, which previously won the Lynton Caldwell Award for its contribution to environmental politics and policy.
Rabe is a non-resident senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution and is an elected fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration. He writes frequently in blogs and other venues for both institutions. His recent policy engagement has included service as co-chair of the Assumable Waters Committee of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and on National Academy of Public Administration panels examining governance challenges facing the Department of Interior, Department of Commerce, and the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. He is regularly quoted in leading media outlets, including the New York Times, the Economist, National Public Radio, and E&E News. University of Michigan service included a role as commissioner from 2019-2021 on the University of Michigan President's Commission on Carbon Neutrality. Rabe co-directed the National Surveys on Energy and Environment from 2011 to 2021 and directed the Center for State, Local, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) from 2012 to 2019.
Mustafa is assisting CLOSUP in conducting qualitative analysis on the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission. He is a Masters of Public Policy at the Ford School. He also served on the Secretary of State's team to support the…
Job Titles:
- Project Manager
- Research Area Specialists
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Natalie joined CLOSUP in 2015 and serves as project manager for the CLOSUP Fiscal Health Project and assists with project management for the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS). She also manages CLOSUP's web and social media outreach activities. She received her undergraduate degree in Economics and Master's degree in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University. Prior to joining CLOSUP, she worked for the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) at the University of Michigan.
Job Titles:
- Harold T. Shapiro Collegiate Professor of Public Policy
Paul Courant is the Harold T. Shapiro Collegiate Professor of Public Policy, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Economics and Information and a Presidential Bicentennial Professor at the University of Michigan. Paul served as director of CLOSUP from 2007-2008, after serving as a provost of the university, and before serving as university librarian and dean of libraries.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor and Chair of the Policy Analysis and Public Finance Faculty at the School of Public
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Sanya Carley is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Policy Analysis and Public Finance faculty at the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University. Her research focuses on electricity and transportations policy, and the effects, effectiveness, and unintended consequences of these policies. She also researches energy-based economic development and public perceptions of emerging energy technologies. Dr. Carley has extensive consulting experience with the World Bank, RTI International, ARCeconomics, The Nicholas Institute, and the Environmental Protection Agency. She is a managing editor of the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management and on the editorial boards of Public Administration Review and Energy Research & Social Science. She received her Ph.D. in public policy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and bachelor's degrees in economics and sustainable development from Swarthmore College.
Job Titles:
- Senior Project Manager at the Graham Sustainability Institute
- Senior Project Manager, Graham Sustainability Institut
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Sarah Mills is a senior project manager at the Graham Sustainability Institute, where she manages the Climate + Energy activities. This includes a grant from the Michigan Office of Climate and Energy to help communities across the state consider energy in their land use planning, zoning, and other policymaking. Sarah also conducts research at the intersection of energy policy and land use planning--especially in rural communities. Her current work focuses on how renewable energy development impacts rural communities (positively and negatively), the disparate reactions of rural landowners to wind and solar projects, and how state and local policies facilitate or hinder renewable energy deployment, some of which is in conjunction with the Ford School Renewable Energy Support Fund. She was previously on staff at CLOSUP, where she helped managed the MPPS, and CLOSUP's Energy and Environmental Policy Initiative (EEPI), including the National Surveys on Energy and the Environment (NSEE).
Job Titles:
- Professor of Health Management
- Professor of Health Management and Policy, Global Public Health, and Political Science
Professor of Health Management and Policy, Global Public Health, and Political Science.
Senior Expert Advisor on Health Governance for the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
Scott L. Greer, Ph.D, a political scientist, is Professor of Health Management and Policy, Global Public Health, and (by courtesy) Political Science at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Senior Expert Advisor on Health Governance…
Professor of Health Management and Policy, Global Public Health, and Political Science. Senior Expert Advisor on Health Governance for the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
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Scott L. Greer, Ph.D, a political scientist, is Professor of Health Management and Policy, Global Public Health, and (by courtesy) Political Science at the University of Michigan School of Public Health and Senior Expert Advisor on Health Governance for the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies.
He researches the politics of health policies, with a special focus on the politics and policies of the European Union and the impact of federalism on health care. Before coming to Michigan, he taught at University College London. He has published over fifty book chapters and articles in journals including the British Medical Journal, American Journal of Public Health, Social Science and Medicine, Journal of European Public Policy, Journal of European Social Policy, and Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law. His most recent books include Everything you always wanted to know about European Union health policies but were afraid to ask (2014), Strengthening health system governance: better policies, stronger performance (2015), Federalism and Decentralization in European Health and Social Care (2013), and European Union Public Health Policies (2013).
Job Titles:
- Lecturer
- Lecturer at the Ford School
- Lecturer in Public Policy
Stephanie Leiser is a lecturer at the Ford School and leads the Michigan Local Government Fiscal Health Project at the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP). Her general area of interest is in public finance, budgeting, and financial management, and she has particular expertise in state and local tax policy, business taxation and incentives, and local government fiscal health. She was previously a lecturer at the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Policy and Governance at the University of Washington, where she earned her PhD in 2014. Stephanie has taught courses in public budgeting and financial management, tax policy, nonprofit financial management, and microeconomics. A Ford School alum (MPP '05), she has also worked as a tax policy analyst for the Michigan legislature and continues to be involved in state and local fiscal policy in Lansing.
Educational background
PhD in public policy and management, University of Washington
MPP, University of Michigan
Tom joined CLOSUP at its founding in the fall of 2001 and serves as executive director of the Center. He also co-directs the Center's Fiscal Health Project and directs the Michigan Public Policy Survey (MPPS) program, and has been the lead or co-author on more than 100 MPPS publications covering a wide range of state and local government policy topics. He previously served as study manager, program manager and administrator for 11 years with the American National Election Studies at the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research. Outside of work, Tom serves as a board member and past president of a nature area non-profit organization that focuses on stewardship and elementary school environmental educational opportunities in Ann Arbor, MI. He has a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's in public administration, both from the University of Michigan.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor
- Assistant Professor in the School for Environment
- Assistant Professor, School for Environment & Sustainability
Tony G. Reames is an assistant professor in the School for Environment and Sustainability and directs the Urban Energy Justice Lab which researches topics at the intersection of energy and equity. He has a PhD in public administration from the University of Kansas, a Masters in engineering management from Kansas State University, and a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University. Dr. Reames conducts research in the emerging field of energy justice, which investigates fair and equitable access to affordable, reliable, and clean energy technology. His research employs energy analysis, geographic information systems (GIS), and policy analysis tools to study disparities in urban residential energy dynamics focusing on the production and persistence of spatial, racial, and socioeconomic inequality.
Vic is a student policy analyst studying local recycling policy in Michigan communities for the Michigan Local Recycling Policy Program (MiLRePP). She is currently an undergraduate student at the College of Literature, Science, and Arts (Class of…