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Most of Michigan's local leaders say democracy is healthy in their communities

Oct 28, 2026

Many of Michigan's local leaders offer high marks for the health of democracy in their respective communities, continuing an improving trend despite lower ratings for the state as a whole. That's the key finding from the latest installment of the Mic...

Most of Michigan's local leaders say democracy is healthy in their communities

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Local government offers a path to tangible impact

Oct 22, 2026

From providing clean water to ensuring strong, sustainable infrastructure, local governments shape a majority of the programs Americans interact with everyday. Yet the people leading Michigan's municipalities do not fully reflect the communities they...

Local government offers a path to tangible impact

News

Small Michigan communities feel early voting strain

Oct 11, 2026

Most Michigan city and township officials report positive or neutral impacts from recent state election administration reforms, but many cite the costs and staffing demands associated with nine days of early in-person voting as a concern, according t...

Small Michigan communities feel early voting strain

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Ford School students turn policy training into practical support for Michigan communities

Oct 7, 2026

When Brighton city leaders set out to help residents better understand how public dollars are raised and spent, they faced a challenge familiar to many local governments. Their detailed 100-page financial report was not written for everyday use.A tea...

Ford School students turn policy training into practical support for Michigan communities

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Alice Kinney named 2026 Robert R. Robinson Memorial Scholarship recipient

Aug 21, 2026

Southwest Michigan native Alice Kinney (MPP '27) was awarded the 2026 Robert R. Robinson Memorial Scholarship from the Michigan Townships Association (MTA). Named for the longtime township advocate and former MTA executive director, the annual schola...

Alice Kinney named 2026 Robert R. Robinson Memorial Scholarship recipient

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Leiser promotes new MPPS report: Michigan local governments highly confident in election integrity

Aug 17, 2026

In a commentary for The Conversation, Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy director Stephanie Leiser promotes the latest findings of the Michigan Public Policy Survey,(MPPS) which show that "local officials across Michigan are highly confident i...

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Michigan's local leaders remain confident in election security, accuracy despite claims of vulnerabilities

Jul 21, 2026

Local officials across Michigan have maintained high confidence in election security and accuracy over the past several years. A soon-to-be released survey from the University of Michigan shows city and township officials—including those who conduct ...

Michigan's local leaders remain confident in election security, accuracy despite claims of vulnerabilities

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Majority of Michigan's local leaders see state moving in wrong direction, U-M survey finds

Jul 7, 2026

A majority of local government officials in Michigan say the state is on the wrong track, according to a new University of Michigan survey that reverses a three-year trend in improving attitudes about the state's overall direction. To be sure, the fi...

Majority of Michigan's local leaders see state moving in wrong direction, U-M survey finds

News

CLOSUP marks 25 years at Lansing anniversary event

Apr 17, 2026

On April 15, 2026, the Ford School's Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) celebrated a quarter century of impact. Approximately 75 current and former CLOSUP directors, staff, students, collaborators, and state legislators gathered in La...

CLOSUP marks 25 years at Lansing anniversary event

News

Government of, by and for people? Sure, but it needs more people to serve, U-M survey finds

Apr 8, 2026

Abraham Lincoln famously spoke of a government of, by and for the people. Yet it's getting harder to find people to serve in government, according to a survey of local leaders across Michigan. The findings come in the latest installment of the Michig...

Government of, by and for people? Sure, but it needs more people to serve, U-M survey finds

News

Ford School marks 45 years as a PPIA host site, welcomes 2026 Junior Summer Institute cohort

Mar 20, 2026

This summer, the Ford School welcomes 18 undergraduate students from 10 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico for the Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute (JSI). Chosen through a highly competitive n...

Ford School marks 45 years as a PPIA host site, welcomes 2026 Junior Summer Institute cohort

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Concerns about elected officials’ budgeting expertise emerges from survey of Michigan community leaders

Feb 4, 2026

A majority of Michigan city and village officials say they are concerned about the lack of budgeting expertise among the elected officials in their communities as they deal with rising economic and political uncertainty and challenging state and fede...

Concerns about elected officials’ budgeting expertise emerges from survey of Michigan community leaders

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Trust falls among Michigan’s local officials that residents can be responsible partners in policymaking

Nov 19, 2025

The trust Michigan's local leaders have that the residents they serve can responsibly participate in the policymaking process has eroded to alarmingly low levels. Further, the officials' assessments of the tone of civil discourse among residents has ...

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Likelihood, potential impacts of federal shutdown: Ford School experts can comment

Oct 1, 2025

EXPERTS ADVISORY University of Michigan researchers are available to share their insights on a federal government shutdown at the end of the day Tuesday, unless lawmakers break the impasse and make a deal before then. Stephanie Leiser is a lecturer a...

Likelihood, potential impacts of federal shutdown: Ford School experts can comment

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Stephanie Leiser named director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) as center marks 25th anniversary

Aug 28, 2025

Stephanie Leiser, an expert in public finance and local government fiscal health, has been appointed the next director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. H...

Stephanie Leiser: Helping local goverments in Michigan become healthier and more resilient

News

IPC’s Aid and Development Workshop series helps students meet the moment

Aug 11, 2025

Grant writing and proposal development, once useful skills, have become essential for international development professionals, according to Ford School lecturer Amy Beck Harris. “As international organizations undergo sweeping changes, the actual ski...

IPC’s Aid and Development Workshop series helps students meet the moment

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Brian Jacob: Michigan's education system needs structural reform now

Aug 4, 2025

After a year of studying Michigan’s K-12 education system — reviewing the academic literature, analyzing data, interviewing and surveying stakeholders, and examining state practices nationwide — one thing is clear: The current system of state-level e...

Brian Jacob: Michigan's education system needs structural reform now

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Local Officials: Residents trust police more where there are policies to improve relations

May 22, 2025

More Michigan communities are adopting policies to improve police-community relations, and local officials see increased trust among residents for law enforcement officers where certain practices were in place. The latest Michigan Public Policy Surve...

Local Officials: Residents trust police more where there are policies to improve relations

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U-M develops free tool to empower municipalities, modernize financial reporting

May 19, 2025

Free webinar June 4 will demo the Excel to iXBRL Conversion toolA free, open-source tool designed by the University of Michigan's Ford School of Public Policy is now available to help local governments make financial data more accessible. Developed ...

U-M develops free tool to empower municipalities, modernize financial reporting

News

Lacking a playbook for dealing with economic decline, leaders of smaller cities opt for pragmatism, flexibility

Mar 10, 2025

The challenges facing big cities such as Detroit and Cleveland have been widely examined by experts over the decades, as each has dealt with the loss of population and major industries. Less chronicled are the situations in small- to medium-sized com...

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Most Michigan law enforcement officials back some use of mental health workers, others in 911 response

Feb 26, 2025

Most of Michigan’s county sheriffs and local police chiefs support some type of alternative or hybrid approach for responding to 911 calls beyond traditional law enforcement officers. However, a majority of them believe it would be difficult to imple...

Most Michigan law enforcement officials back some use of mental health workers, others in 911 response

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Nearly half of Michigan law enforcement officials concerned about funding, according to U-M survey

Jan 23, 2025

Among Michigan law enforcement agency leaders, concerns about funding levels are widespread, with almost half of chiefs of police and county sheriffs saying the local governments they serve do not provide sufficient money for their agencies. However,...

Nearly half of Michigan law enforcement officials concerned about funding, according to U-M survey

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Law enforcement leaders view pretrial diversion programs as a source for positive change

Nov 20, 2024

A majority of Michigan sheriffs, police chiefs and county prosecutors support programs that allow certain offenders to participate in alternative paths to standard criminal prosecution, according to a new University of Michigan study. The broad suppo...

Law enforcement leaders view pretrial diversion programs as a source for positive change

News

Majority of local officials in Michigan lack confidence in ‘red-flag law’ aimed at reducing gun violence

Oct 31, 2024

A majority of local government and law enforcement officials in Michigan say they lack confidence the state’s new “red-flag law” aimed at reducing gun violence will do so, according to a University of Michigan survey. Further, those officials express...

Majority of local officials in Michigan lack confidence in ‘red-flag law’ aimed at reducing gun violence

News

CLOSUP categorizes ‘a tsunami’ of public input to help redraw Michigan districts

Jul 10, 2024

Students working with the University of Michigan’s Center for Local, State and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) have created a system to help a Michigan commission collect and analyze public comments about drawing Michigan’s congressional and state legislative ...

Redistricting Panel: Approved, and now voted on

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Ford School researchers to study Michigan’s education governance

May 1, 2024

In partnership with the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), a team of researchers from the Ford School will conduct a study into how Michigan’s education governance system can be improved for the benefit of public school students. “An effective s...

Ford School researchers to study Michigan’s education governance

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Ford school faculty available to weigh in on 2024 elections

Jan 28, 2024

The University of Michigan has published an experts guide to the 2024 elections. Ford School faculty are available to offer insights on relevant issues impacting the elections, including the following: Economics Betsey Stevenson, professor of pu...

Ford school faculty available to weigh in on 2024 elections

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Michigan local government leaders’ assessments of democratic functioning improve from 2021 low, but first signs of trouble at local level emerge

Dec 11, 2023

Michigan local leaders’ assessments of democracy at the national level have improved marginally for two years in a row after a sharp decline in 2021, largely due to fewer local officials rating American democracy as poorly functioning. Similarly, the...

Michigan local government leaders’ assessments of democratic functioning improve from 2021 low, but first signs of trouble at local level emerge

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 becau...

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

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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 about...

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