Michigan Ross Professor Chosen for Public Engagement Faculty Fellowship

The University of Michigan’s Center for Academic Innovation has named Andy Hoffman, the Holcim (U.S.) Professor and professor of management and organizations at the Ross School of Business, as one of 18 inaugural recipients of the Public Engagement Faculty Fellowship.

In collaboration with units across campus, Hoffman and the other fellows will complete an intensive Studio Experience in which they will meet as a group and with experts across campus to build skills, develop relationships, and share experiences to engage the public.

The cohort includes nine Fellows eager to explore and build their skills, and nine Mentor Fellows with more experience in public engagement. They represent departments across U-M, including nearly a dozen schools and colleges.

“Public research universities have enormous potential to improve our world. U-M’s Public Engagement Faculty Fellowships foster skills that help our faculty use their expertise to serve the public good. I applaud the inaugural class of fellows and the Center for Academic Innovation for their commitment to impactful engagement that advances U-M’s public mission,” said U-M President Mark Schlissel.

Hoffman was selected as a 2020 Mentor Fellow. He has written about the importance of academics engaging with the public and remaining relevant in society, and he has participated in a Michigan Meeting on “Academic Engagement in Public and Political Discourse.”

"I am proud to be selected as one of the first cohort of Public Engagement Faculty Fellows,” Hoffman said. “I am even more proud of the University of Michigan for creating such a program, elevating the importance and training of public engagement among our ranks of professors. Now more than ever, academic scholars have a responsibility to bring their work to the general public and a role to play in elevating the quality of public and political discourse in this country."

All fellows are committed to the critical mission of challenging the present and enriching the future by fostering critical connections between public communities and the work of the university.

The public engagement team at the Center for Academic Innovation serves as the lead organizer for the fellowship, partnering with units supporting different forms of public engagement across campus.

Using the skills and connections they gain during the Studio Experience, fellows can propose a public engagement project and be eligible for up to $10,000 in funding and in-kind support from the center and other campus units. This model was designed to support opportunities for innovation, interdisciplinarity and bringing together communities that do not frequently work together.