InSPIRE Rackham interdisciplinary workshop
The InSPIRE student group brings together graduate students across diverse programs, including Public Policy, Engineering, Environment and Sustainability, Public Health, and many more, to broaden their understanding of a wide range of contemporary science and technology policy issues.
All STPP students are encouraged to engage with InSPIRE, and have the opportunity to participate in activities including writing workshops, alumni webinars, movie nights, and memo writing competitions.
InSPIRE is a Rackham Interdisciplinary Workshop, and operates with generous support from the Rackham Graduate School.
2026-2027 InSPIRE co-leads are Francesca Burkett, a PhD candidate in Earth and Environmental Sciences ([email protected]), MPP student Madeleine Gibbons-Shapiro ([email protected]), and John Mobley IV, a PhD candidate in Engineering Education Research ([email protected]).
2025-2026 Highlights
This past academic year included welcome back and end-of-year happy hours, alumni webinars with Karissa Kresge and Tyler Hoard, and an alumni coffee chat with Elana Goldenkoff.
In anticipation of technology journalist Karen Hao's visit to campus, InSPIRE hosted a book club discussion of "Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI". The discussion continued with the author herself, as an interdisciplinary group of students met for coffee with the Hao on October 20th. InSPIRE also held a lunchtime panel on data centers, which included activists, a faculty expert, and a community partner from the Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition.
