The end of May was an exciting time for the Ford School, as several of our current faculty members were approved for new positions or received promotions, and a new faculty member joined our Ford School community.

National security expert and current Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence at the Ford School, Javed Ali, was appointed to an associate professor of practice on the faculty of the University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. Both undergraduate and graduate students will have the opportunity to take courses with Ali in fall 2021 as he will be teaching a Ford School course called “Domestic Violence Extremism: Policies, Threats, and New Approaches” and co-teaching an Engineering/Policy course, “Cybersecurity for Future Leaders.”

On May 20, the University of Michigan Board of Regents approved the appointment of Celeste Watkins-Hayes, Jean E. Fairfax Collegiate Professor of Public Policy; professor of sociology; and a University Diversity and Social Transformation Professor, as the associate dean for academic affairs at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. Dr. Watkins-Hayes appointment will serve a three-year term beginning August 1, 2021. We are looking forward to Dr. Watkins-Hayes’ leadership over the next three years and we thank her predecessor, Dr. Paula Lantz, for her service and incredible leadership over the past five years.

Finally, we are excited to announce that both Natasha Pilkauskas and Kaitlin Raimi have been promoted to associate professor, with tenure, at the Ford School. Read more about Dr. Pilkauskas’s work on her Ford School profile, and more about Dr. Raimi’s work in the Ford School directory. Undergraduate students will have the opportunity to take a course with Dr. Pilkauskas in fall 2021 as she will be teaching a Ford School course called “Evaluating Public Policies.”

If you talk to Professor Ali, Dr. Watkins-Hayes, Dr. Pilkauskas, or Dr. Raimi be sure to congratulate them on their new positions and promotions!