Center for Racial Justice

Staff

Katrina Hamann

DEI Marketing and Communications Specialist

Katrina (they/she) brings experience in community organizing and a dedication to developing accessible communication strategies to advance the Ford School's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts.

Staff

Angela Nicoloff

Administrative Assistant Senior

Angela (she/her) joined the Ford School in April 2022. She handles event planning, scheduling, and the center's finances.

Publication

Talk to him: How a conversation can shape public support for women’s rights

Dec 17, 2024

A single conversation with a close family member may not change a young woman’s views on policies protecting their rights, but it can strongly influence young men’s attitudes.A University of Michigan study found that family opinions heavily shape...

Talk to him: How a conversation can shape public support for women’s rights

State & Hill

Spotlights, fall 2024

Dec 17, 2024

Welcome, changemakersThe Ford School’s Center for Racial Justice proudly welcomes its third cohort of Visiting Fellows: writer, filmmaker, and community organizer Charlene Carruthers; racial justice lawyer, historian, and organizer Amanda Alexander;...

News

Making it: Snapshots from the Artist Pay Project explores the financial struggles facing artists

Nov 26, 2024

Chicago-based artist and journalist Makeda Easter explores the financial challenges facing artists across disciplines in her immersive exhibition, Making it: $napshots from The Artist Pay Project, currently displayed at the University of Michigan...

Making it: Snapshots from the Artist Pay Project explores the financial struggles facing artists

In the Media

Ostfeld highlights attitudes in cities with high-immigrant populations

Oct 14, 2024 Michigan Public

Speaking with Michigan Public, the Ford School's Mara Ostfeld discusses results from her recent research on public opinion in Michigan on immigration policy. Ostfeld stated, “U.S.-born residents living in cities with a higher proportion of...

Ostfeld highlights attitudes in cities with high-immigrant populations

News

Center for Racial Justice welcomes 2024-25 visiting fellows

Sep 26, 2024

The Ford School’s Center for Racial Justice proudly welcomes Amanda Alexander, Charlene Carruthers, and Bianca D.M. Wilson as Visiting Fellows for the 2024-25 academic year.The Visiting Fellows Program, a signature initiative of the Center for...

Publication

Distrust in U.S. healthcare system fuels COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy

Sep 20, 2024

New research from the University of Michigan examines how long-standing distrust in the U.S. healthcare system has significantly impacted attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccine. The research is led by Celeste Watkins-Hayes, Joan and Sanford Weill...

Distrust in U.S. healthcare system fuels COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy

News

Racial and gender bias in U.S. crime victim compensation programs highlighted in new report

Sep 18, 2024

Significant racial and gender disparities exist in U.S. crime victim compensation programs, revealing Black and Indigenous people as well as survivors of gender-based violence face unique challenges in obtaining financial support, according to a new...

Racial and gender bias in U.S. crime victim compensation programs highlighted in new report

News

Ford School panel examines immigration on the ballot

Sep 17, 2024

The Ford School’s fall event series kicked off with more than 115 people in attendance for Immigration on the Ballot, a panel discussion about the policy landscape and implications for the upcoming election, hosted by the Center for Racial...

Ford School panel examines immigration on the ballot

News

Hassan awarded U-M anti-racism grant

Sep 10, 2024

Ford School assistant professor Yousif Hassan has been chosen for a University of Michigan research grant for his work that explores how AI innovations and data can center social justice and address racial and economic inequalities in African...

News

Ford School events highlight policy, civic engagement, and Conversations Across Differences

Aug 28, 2024

The Ford School has an exciting and diverse series of events this fall, designed to encourage policy debate, civic engagement, and Conversations Across Differences in a number of ways for students, faculty, staff, and the wider U-M and general...

Ford School events highlight policy, civic engagement, and Conversations Across Differences

In the Media

A look at Republican efforts to court Black and Latinx voters

Jun 28, 2024 Listen Now: Created Equal on Detroit Public Radio

"Earlier this month, Trump made a campaign stop at 180 Church in Detroit in an attempt to appeal to both Black and Latinx voters. Today on "Created Equal" we're joined by five guests — including Mara Ostfeld, Research Director at the Center for...

State & Hill

Spotlights, spring 2024

Apr 24, 2024

A prescription for equityAs the first city-wide experiment of its kind, Rx Kids provides cash payments for new parents—and new promise for eradicating early childhood poverty. Flint's high child poverty rates came into focus nearly 10 years ago when...

State & Hill

It’s all about equity

Apr 24, 2024

Liz Gerber sees key role for governments in the transition to electric vehiclesThe Biden administration wants electric vehicles (EVs) to comprise fifty percent of new vehicle sales in just six years. This has required massive investment in our...

News

Highlights from the Dean's Symposium

Apr 21, 2024

Two days of panels, chats, and keynotes focused on examining and seeking solutions to some of the biggest challenges we face in Michigan, in the United States, and across the globe. More than 400 students, faculty, staff, and friends attended in...

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...

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

Publication

Injuries of inequality and the promise of safety nets

Mar 7, 2024

What would a comprehensive strategy for reproductive rights and access look like, borrowing from the lessons from the fight against HIV? This is the question that Celeste Watkins-Hayes, Joan and Sanford Weill Dean of Public Policy at the Ford School...

Injuries of inequality and the promise of safety nets

News

IHP continues with university engagement efforts

Mar 6, 2024

The University of Michigan’s Inclusive History Project is continuing its efforts to engage members of the university community by developing a tri-campus student advisory committee and creating a research and engagement fund.The project is U-M’s...

IHP continues with university engagement efforts

News

Julian Brave NoiseCat receives Sundance Directing Award for "Sugarcane" Documentary

Feb 1, 2024

Former Center for Racial Justice Fellow Julian Brave NoiseCat, along with co-director Emily Kassie, received the United States Directing Award for the Documentary Sugarcane at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Sugarcane follows an investigation...

Julian Brave NoiseCat receives Sundance Directing Award for "Sugarcane" Documentary

News

Flint high school students glimpse college life with 23Express

Jan 16, 2024

Michael Williams describes himself as a “closeted nerd.” Growing up in Flint, Michigan, he felt like he had to disguise his love of learning in order to blend in with his peers. “It wasn’t ‘cool’ to like school,” he explains. “You could be smart,...

Flint high school students glimpse college life with 23Express

State & Hill

Our new dean, Celeste Watkins-Hayes

Dec 12, 2023

State & Hill sat down with the Ford School’s new dean to reflect on her scholarship, her mentors, and Gerald Ford State & Hill: Tell us about your intellectual journey to leading the Ford School.Celeste Watkins-Hayes: What you see in my leadership...

State & Hill

Spotlights, fall 2023

Dec 10, 2023

What’s on the barbie? Economists Justin Wolfers and Betsey Stevenson were on the guest list as the White House hosted a State Dinner for Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in October. Skills match More than fifty...

State & Hill

The Rules of Attention: A poem by Airea D. Matthews (MPA ’07)

Dec 10, 2023

Philadelphia Poet Laureate and educator Airea D. Matthews (MPA ’07) returned to the Ford School this fall to discuss her memoir-in-verse with writing instructor Molly Spencer at an event hosted by the Center for Racial Justice. The following day,...

The Rules of Attention: A poem by Airea D. Matthews (MPA ’07)

Alumni spotlight

“Tremble with the world”: Airea D. Matthews (MPA ‘07) on using the arts as an avenue for change

Dec 6, 2023

Airea D. Matthews (MPA ‘07) dreamt of being a writer since she was a child. As she got older, she struggled to identify a clear path that turned her dream into reality. “My working-class roots didn’t seem to make space for sustainable possibilities...

“Tremble with the world”: Airea D. Matthews (MPA ‘07) on using the arts as an avenue for change

News

Majority of Flint residents support reparations for Black Americans, CRJ survey shows

Nov 7, 2023

More than half of Flint residents favor reparations for Black Americans, although levels of support vary depending on whether the proposal refers to reparations as a broad concept or specific reparative policies like cash payments or financial...

Majority of Flint residents support reparations for Black Americans, CRJ survey shows

News

Meet our new faculty: Kristina Fullerton Rico

Sep 22, 2023

Kristina Fullerton Rico joins the Ford School as a Predoctoral Fellow at the Center for Racial Justice. Her work focuses on the social and emotional impacts of U.S. immigration policies that lead unauthorized immigrants and their families to endure...

Meet our new faculty: Kristina Fullerton Rico

News

Center for Racial Justice welcomes 2023-24 visiting fellows cohort!

Sep 18, 2023

The Ford School’s Center for Racial Justice proudly welcomes Dr. Moya Z. Bailey, Dr. Angela S. García, Dr. Clarence Wardell III, and Diane J. Wright as Visiting Fellows for the 2023-24 academic year. The Visiting Fellows Program, the signature...

Center for Racial Justice welcomes 2023-24 visiting fellows cohort!

Publication

Dean Watkins-Hayes salutes her mentor, editing the Speechifying compendium

Aug 30, 2023

Ford School Dean Celeste Watkins-Hayes is honoring one of her great mentors, Dr. Johnnetta Betsch Cole — noted Black feminist anthropologist, the first Black female president of Spelman College, former director of the Smithsonian Institution's...

Dean Watkins-Hayes salutes her mentor, editing the Speechifying compendium

News

Meet our new faculty: Mo Torres

Aug 25, 2023

Mo Torres returns to the Ford School (he graduated with his MPP in 2015) as one of six University of Michigan Society of Fellows for a three-year appointment. He will work closely with the Center for Racial Justice. Torres is a historical...