President Ford remembered for public policy, service

In prepared remarks last October — his final address to his alma mater — President Gerald R. Ford offered gratitude to the University for having a school that bears his name and emphasized public service, to which he devoted most of his life.

President Ford delivers remarks at the Nov. 12, 2004, Weill Hall groundbreaking ceremony. (Photo by File Photo / Martin Vloet, U-M Photo Services)

His contribution to public policy and life of public service, as well as his unwavering devotion to his family and University, will be remembered Sept. 28 at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. University leaders and guest speakers — including Paul O'Neill, former secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and Michael Ford, son of President Ford — will celebrate the life and legacy of U-M's most famous alumnus during activities held in the Annenberg Auditorium, 1120 Weill Hall.

Ford died in his California home Dec. 26, 2006, at the age of 93.

"We took some time in planning this event in part so that, in addition to the memorial program, we could host substantive panels on policy topics that are current but also relevant to legislation and policy that marked the Ford presidency," says Laura Lee, the Ford School's director of communications and outreach. "One of the panels will be on the ways in which the federal government can influence the macroeconomy and the other on the legacy of Title IX, which was signed into law by President Ford."

All activities are free and open to the public. The schedule is as follows:

1 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. Whipping Inflation Then and Now: Managing the Macroeconomy. Speakers: O'Neill and Allen Sinai, chief global economist and president of Decision Economics Inc. Moderator: Susan Collins, Joan and Sanford Weill Dean of Public Policy.

2:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Leveling the Field: The Legacy of the 1972 Title IX Legislation. Speakers: William C. Martin, director of the Department of Athletics and former president of the U.S. Olympic Committee; Nancy Hogshead-Makar, Olympic champion and legal adviser to the Women's Sports Foundation; Welch Suggs, author of "A Place on the Team." Moderator: Edie Goldenberg, professor of political science and public policy.

4 p.m. A Tribute to President Ford

Remarks will be given by Collins, Michael Ford and President Mary Sue Coleman. Remembrances will be made by Martin; Martin Allen Jr., chairman emeritus, Gerald R. Ford Foundation; and Uchenna Ukaegbu Alexander, who earned a master of public policy in '05. The Men's Glee Club is scheduled to perform.

The event is co-sponsored by the Ford School and the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum.