
Town Hall: H. Luke Shaefer – “Ending Infant Poverty in the United States and Beyond”
April 15, 2026 @ 11:30 am - 1:30 pm

Luke Shaefer, one of the nation’s leading scholars on poverty and social welfare policy, is the Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy at the University of Michigan’s Ford School of Public Policy. Shaefer also directs Poverty Solutions, which partners with communities and policymakers to find new ways to prevent and alleviate poverty. His research has been supported by the National Science Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the U.S. Census Bureau. Dr. Shaefer has presented his research at the White House, before numerous federal agencies, and testified before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. His work has been cited in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Economist, and The Atlantic, and he has been featured on PBS NewsHour, Marketplace, 1A, All Things Considered, and CNBC’s Nightly Business Report. Professor Shaefer is the co-director of Rx Kids, the nation’s first citywide maternal and infant cash prescription program launched in Flint, Michigan in January 2024.