Two faculty members, Marisa C. Eisenberg and H. Luke Shaefer, were recognized with the University of Michigan President’s Awards for Public Engagement at an in-person ceremony on April 11 for their commitment and contributions to significantly impact society through national and state leadership service and their efforts to address the challenges our communities face every day.
From helping lead the state of Michigan’s public health response throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to leveraging research to advance social policy that provides crucial assistance to families in need, Eisenberg and Shaefer embody the University of Michigan’s commitment to public engagement and impact and dedication to addressing challenges facing our communities.
Eisenberg, associate professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health, and associate professor of mathematics and of complex systems in LSA, received the 2021 President’s Award for National and State Leadership. It honors individuals who provide sustained, dedicated and influential leadership and service in major national or state capacities. Her contributions to the public health response amid the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically her work modeling trajectories of the pandemic and generating predictive scenarios to help state policymakers determine next steps in the response. These efforts have been integral to the response efforts, and untiring for two years as she continues to present weekly forecasts to state leaders and meet regularly with policymakers.
“U-M is an incredible hub for discovery, and if we want those discoveries to have an impact on the world around us, then we need to do this kind of community and public engagement work. We have to engage and translate those discoveries into things that can help people and can make changes,” Eisenberg said. “I’m deeply grateful, both for the opportunity to contribute to the COVID-19 response and for the truly incredible teams that I’ve had the privilege of working with, both at U-M and at the state level.”
Shaefer, director of Poverty Solutions, professor of social work in the School of Social Work, and the Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy in the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, received the 2021 President’s Award for Public Impact. This award honors individuals whose research and expertise tangibly addresses a major public-sector challenge. Shaefer was awarded largely for his work on the expanded Child Tax Credit, and his impassioned dedication to leveraging research to help communities and advance social policy. The expansion of the tax credit was motivated in part by Shaefer’s work, on which he partnered with the city of Detroit. Shaefer has a demonstrated commitment to public engagement through educating students and communities, advocacy and outreach and working to effect change by, among other efforts, testifying before Congress.
“I believe, especially in my own domain of the social sciences, that we were really founded for the betterment of the human condition, and so this should be central to what we do. We should be driven by the interests and the needs of communities that we are embedded in,” Shaefer said. “It means a great deal to me to be at a university that has an award like this honoring public engagement. I think it really lifts up the importance of this kind of work.”
U-M President Mary Sue Coleman celebrated the recipients and acknowledged that the demands on faculty members are enormous, and that public engagement can sometimes feel like another requirement on a long list of tasks that need to be completed.
“But at Michigan, serving society is an integral part of our mission. And every day, countless U-M scholars put engagement at the core of their careers, without hesitation and with tremendous passion and commitment.This is what makes today’s program such a pleasure because it allows us to celebrate two of our most dedicated professors.”
U-M President Mary Sue Coleman and Marisa Eisenberg
President Coleman detailed some of the innovative and inspiring work conducted by Eisenberg and Shaefer that led to their recognition.
“Since the start of the pandemic more than two years ago, [Marisa’s] modeling has provided state and national leaders with scenarios they could use to develop responses to this public health crisis. Her forecasts have helped to save lives. Local health departments, governors, school superintendents, the CDC – all have used her data to determine what measures to take in fighting the virus. Along the way, she has mentored students and provided them with an invaluable experience of working through a pandemic. At the heart of Marisa’s work has been a steadfast commitment to science and accuracy, for which we are all grateful.
“Luke is passionate about eradicating poverty in the United States, among the wealthiest countries in the world. The challenges faced by impoverished families were never more apparent than when the pandemic struck and people lost their jobs. That loss of income was devastating to families already struggling to get by. The expanded Child Tax Credit passed by Congress genuinely saved lives by giving families the support they needed to put food on the table and keep the lights on. Luke’s research and advocacy were integral to the tax credit and exemplified the importance of translating research into impact. He has advised leaders at all government levels and has managed to write an award-winning and heartbreaking book about Americans living in poverty. Luke, we are so very proud and grateful for the work you do to shine a light on the most vulnerable members of our society. You shape public policy, improve lives, and exemplify the profound impact of Michigan faculty.”
U-M President Mary Sue Coleman and Luke Shaefer
U-M Vice President for Research Rebecca Cunningham, who opened the award ceremony, emphasized the importance of collaboration and community-engaged work at the ceremony.
“As a community, we cannot begin to solve the world’s greatest challenges if we simply operate in silos. We have a responsibility to ensure that our collective knowledge and discoveries are translated in ways that positively benefit communities worldwide. That is why we are here today — to celebrate the tremendous societal and public impact generated by you and your colleagues,” Cunningham said.
During the event, Cunningham posed questions to a panel including Eisenberg, Shaefer, and President Coleman, as well as U-M School of Public Health Dean F. Dubois Bowman and Director of the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies Ann Chih Lin.
They discussed how to change the narrative of public engagement at higher education institutions, translate research into impact, inserting expertise into important public dialogue, engaging with policymakers, using information to enhance society, and more.
“As we look toward the future, the value of the institutions of higher education will in part be determined based on the degree to which we are making direct contributions to the betterment of society. These types of activities or efforts don’t always align with our academic norms. That’s something we will have to be more intentional about,” Bowman said.
Lin talked about the importance of honors like this at U-M to acknowledge public engagement efforts by faculty. “One of the things that this award has really done is to help us understand that people are doing such interesting research — and a lot of it is important for society. So, how do we take that research and connect it? We’ve seen that over time [faculty] are not only doing the very good work on scholarship, they are also making the effort to build toward something with community partners,” Lin said. “It’s been a real privilege to be at a university which welcomes and supports the fact that we need to speak up for all of our colleagues.”
Shaefer explained that he always wanted his work to be connected to the world and have an impact. He said he practices this by listening to community partners, policymakers, and others — and building work based on their interests. “There are ways to be strategic and just because you’re doing public engagement doesn’t mean you aren’t doing academic work. You can do community engaged work and still be successful,” Shaefer said.
Eisenberg discussed the importance of building connections, something that was brought to the forefront during the COVID-19 pandemic. “We had previously worked with MDHHS on other problems and topics, so some of those connections were already there and could be activated,” she said, adding that they are at an even stronger level of connectivity now as they are in discussions regularly still. “It underscores the importance of building that groundwork for a lot of different things because then you can grow it into something bigger when you need it.”
Vice President for Government Relations Chris Kolb introduced an “Essays in Engagement” session of the event which featured presentations and discussions on “The Case for Prenatal Care Redesign” and the “Public Engagement Faculty Fellowship Program.” Kolb said that he can say with certainty, from his experience being on the Governor’s cabinet, that information from the University of Michigan is integral to helping policymakers make informed decisions.
It is significant that U-M has an award that elevates the work of being engaged in communities and has a noticeable impact, Shaefer said. Eisenberg added that it’s reassuring to know how much U-M values the efforts of translating scientific and academic findings into impactful outcomes for communities.
