Dear Alumni & Friends:

It’s my distinct pleasure to mark a successful conclusion to the academic year.

We have much to celebrate.

On April 29, we celebrated the Class of 2023 – undergraduates and graduate students alike – who not only overcame their exams and final projects, but who also persevered through the unexpected challenges of COVID-19.

All of us should join in that celebration, a testimony to our enduring adaptability, integrity and excellence.

Survey says…

This month, I’d like to showcase U-M’s Institute for Social Research (ISR), the world’s largest academic social science survey and research organization — where 300 scientists from over 20 academic disciplines come together to study society’s constantly changing challenges.

I am fortunate to have access to the talented experts at ISR who are advising me on how best to approach data collection related to Vision 2034, my strategic visioning initiative for the University.

ISR’s work began in 1948 when founders Angus Campbell and Robert Kahn (pictured above) pioneered theories and methods that produced the only correct prediction of Harry Truman’s presidential victory that year. The institute was formalized in 1949, and since then, ISR has evolved into a global leader in population-based surveys and data acquisition.

ISR’s research continues to transcend academic disciplines and political, economic, and social boundaries. Its work is a telescope on society at the most fundamental level. By learning more about ourselves, we can better understand how to grow and change, how to make ourselves into the people we aspire to be.

I’ll see you in May.

Sincerely,
Santa J. Ono, PhD
President