MICHIGAN DATA + POLICY FELLOWSHIP Now more than ever, Michigan needs our help. Facing the twin crises of a global pandemic and unparalleled economic and social distress, our state government is being called upon to respond to ever-growing challenges. And we know that when budgets are strained and needs are increasing, making evidencebased decisions about where to invest scarce resources is critical.
The Challenge In the world of evidence-based policy making, there is often a gap between the work of academic researchers and government officials. Governments must implement programs and policies, but may not have the time or resources to compile and use rigorous research to improve public services in real-time, let alone conduct their own sophisticated program evaluation. Similarly, academic researchers are well-positioned to provide data analysis and program evaluation to government partners, but often do not have access to the people and data to generate the most useful and timely evidence government officials need.
What if there were a way to bridge that gap, and bring government and research together to better meet the needs of the people who use state programs and services?
The Vision As a policy research organization with a deep commitment to the public good in Michigan, the Youth Policy Lab launched the Michigan Data & Policy Fellowship program in 2019 to fill this gap. The Michigan Data & Policy Fellowship is designed to provide dedicated support to the State of Michigan through the placement of early-career, master’s-level, policy professionals in state agencies. Fellows in this program: • are recruited and hired by YPL to serve two-year, fixed term appointments • are placed full-time in a state agency, reporting directly to the state agency project lead • have direct access to and support from UM faculty expertise • receive mentorship and supervision from YPL Faculty Directors, Executive Director, and staff The YPL Fellowship provides the State of Michigan technical assistance and strategic support to achieve specific and measurable improvements in social policies and state programs. The YPL Fellows not only provide the state with the targeted support to address challenging policy or program issues they would not otherwise have the bandwidth to address, but the fellows also gain practical experience in the social policy field and develop relationships with key leaders and policymakers across the state that can help them on their career paths.
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The Opportunity To bring this much needed support to state government, YPL is currently seeking support for our 2021-2023 cohort of fellows. This a tremendous opportunity for those who are seeking to make an impact on government decision-making while providing on-the-ground training to early-career policy leaders. The Fellowship is an efficient and cost-effective approach to helping the state achieve strategic, cross-departmental goals that cannot be accomplished by existing state staff – goals that are often deprioritized in times of constraint and crisis. For recent Masters of Public Policy (MPP) and Masters of Public Administration (MPA) graduates in particular, the Fellowship provides unparalleled on-the-ground experience in state government, with the ability to harness U-M’s research and data expertise to improve outcomes for Michigan residents. And while YPL seeks all qualified Fellowship applicants, our affiliation with the Ford School creates a natural pipeline of talented policy professionals. Fellowship projects for this cohort will be developed in conjunction with leadership from state agency partners, including MDHHS and MDLEO. Projects are structured flexibly, allowing for both short-term and long-term work that meets the needs of state partners and matches the interests and skillset of the Fellow. YPL has identified the following areas as potential directions for the next cohort of fellows: Creating Opportunity for Michigan’s Workforce • Develop, pilot, and evaluate the impact of pairing resources to help college applicants identify a well-suited career pathway with existing state tuition programs (Futures for Frontliners, Michigan Reconnect, etc.) Improving Maternal and Infant Health Outcomes in Michigan • Continue to build and implement quality measurement and improvement strategies within Michigan’s Maternal Infant Home Visiting Program (MIHP), including tools to help MIHP provider agencies access, understand, and use administrative data to drive decision-making • Advance statewide initiatives that promote health equity and reproductive justice, and address long-standing inequities in maternal and infant mortality driven by systemic racism • Identify impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to maternal and infant health care and social supports, and develop resources to help mitigate gaps in care driven by the pandemic
“ I wanted to let you know how valuable the YPL Fellowship program has been to the Whitmer Administration’s talent initiative in the hopes that you will continue this effort to bring individuals with research and social science background to state government. In a matter of months, Ava has become a central member of the administration’s talent initiatives and someone who will bring a wealth of relevant experience when she returns to YPL. So are we interested in more Fellows? Absolutely. The YPL Fellowship program has contributed greatly to the state’s efforts to advance the public interest.
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Doug Ross Senior Advisor to Governor Whitmer for Michigan Prosperity
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The Impact YPL’s inaugural class of fellows connect U-M’s vast research and data infrastructure to their roles within state government, implementing research-and data-informed policies and program improvements to better serve Michigan families and workers. Creating Opportunity for Michigan’s Workforce Ava Attari, placed at the Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Opportunity (MDLEO), supports the state’s efforts to improve workforce development policies and programs. In her first year, Ava was instrumental in the development of Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s Futures for Frontliners program, which launched in September 2020. Futures for Frontliners is a first-of-its-kind scholarship program for Michigan residents who were frontline workers in essential industries during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program covers community college tuition costs for frontline workers to earn an associate degree or an industry-recognized certificate, as well as tuition-free high school completion courses and skills training for frontline workers. Futures for Frontliners received over 121,000 applications from frontline workers seeking to advance their educational attainment, and over 80,000 have been accepted into the program thus far. In her second year, Ava is directing implementation of the Futures for Frontliners and Reconnect programs and advising the state on program evaluation strategies to measure the impact of Futures for Frontliners on educational attainment and community college retention. She will also be providing strategic insights to the state as it builds out a portfolio of programs intended to boost post-secondary educational attainment for Michiganders. Improving Maternal & Infant Health Outcomes in Michigan Sarah Ostyn, placed at the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), supports efforts to improve maternal and infant health in Michigan. Within the Maternal Infant Health Unit at MDHHS, Sarah focuses on developing and implementing quality measurement strategies for the Maternal-Infant Health Program, Michigan’s largest evidencebased home visiting program for Medicaid-eligible pregnant individuals and their infants. In her first year, Sarah has worked with the department staff to streamline program documents and create a more equitable process for reviewing provider compliance with the requirements of the home visiting model and Medicaid policies. In her second year, Sarah is developing a quality measurement strategy for MIHP that is aligned with national best practices and those in use by other home visiting programs in the state of Michigan.
“ The Data & Policy Fellowship program assures chosen Fellows have a top notch skillset coupled with drive for increasing knowledge and improving assigned program area. As a result of the Fellowship, the entire Certification Review process for the Maternal Infant Health Program (MIHP) was revamped resulting in improved service provision. The MIHP is a statewide, evidence-based home visiting program serving families during the critical time of pregnancy and twelve months postpartum.
Dawn Shanafelt Director, Division of Maternal & Infant Health, MDHHS
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The Lab The University of Michigan Youth Policy Lab helps community and government agencies make better decisions by measuring what really works. We’re data experts who believe that government can and must do better for the people of Michigan. We’re also parents and community members who dream of a brighter future for all of our children. At the Youth Policy Lab, we’re working to make that dream a reality by strengthening programs that address some of our most pressing social challenges. We recognize that the wellbeing of youth is intricately linked to the wellbeing of families and communities, so we engage in work that impacts all age ranges. Using rigorous evaluation design and data analysis, we’re working closely with our partners to build a future where public investments are based on strong evidence, so all Michiganders have a pathway to prosperity.
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University of Michigan Youth Policy Lab 5201 Institute for Social Research 426 Thompson St Ann Arbor, MI 48104 734-647-8829 @YouthPolicyLab youthpolicylab.umich.edu © 2021 by the Regents of the University of Michigan