Phillip J. Bowman
Professor

Phillip J. Bowman is a Professor of Higher Education at the University of Michigan where he is also Director of the Diversity Research and Policy Program (DRPP) and Faculty Associate at the Institute for Social Research. DRPP was launched in 2008 with funding from the National Institutes of Health while Bowman was Founding Director of the National Center for Institutional Diversity (2006-2013), a national think-tank for bridging innovative scholarship with policy-relevant social change. Since 2013, DRPP’s research agenda has continued to expand through strategic alliances with the School of Education, Institute for Social Research and other stakeholders at UM and beyond. As a theoretical and applied social psychologist, Bowman’s scholarship focuses on higher education, racial/ethnic diversity, and related public policy issues (e.g. workforce inequalities, urban family poverty, health disparities and social justice); he has a growing interest in multilevel strengths-based intervention strategies to reduce inequalities, disparities and opportunity gaps. Professor Bowman teaches courses on Race, Ethnicity in Gender in Higher Education; Diversity, Merit and Higher Education; Access & Equity in Postsecondary Education and Strengths-Based STEM Pipeline Interventions.
Prior to 2006, Bowman served as Director of the Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy with the University of Illinois at Chicago and also as a Professor in Psychology, African American Studies and Educational Policy Studies with the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign. While Professor of Education, Human Development and Social Policy at Northwestern University, Bowman held numerous leadership roles including Faculty Fellow with the Institute for Policy Research, Faculty Affiliate with the Joint Center for Poverty Research, Co-Coordinator of the Spencer Training Grant in Education and Social Policy, Director of the Summer Academic Workshop, Director of the Social-Behavioral Science Scholars Program, Chair of the Graduate Program in Counseling Psychology, Interim Chair of the Department of African American Studies. He is an active national and international consultant and has been a Rockefeller and Senior Ford Postdoctoral Fellow. His research has been supported by the Spencer Foundation, state agencies, and several federal agencies, including the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. Bowman received his Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of Michigan where he began his professional career as an Assistant Research Scientist at the Institute for Social Research and Assistant Professor in Psychology and Afroamerican and African Studies.
Bowman teaches courses in the following program(s):
Academic Affairs and Student Development
Higher Education
Higher Education and Master of Public Policy (Dual Degree)
Higher Education and MBA (Dual Degree)
Individually Designed Concentration
Diversity and Social Justice in Higher Education
Higher Education Student Access and Success
Affiliations
Research Affiliations
- National Center for Institutional Diversity
- National Poverty Center
- Research Center for Group Dynamics
Grants
9/1/2017 - ongoing | RWJF Diversity in Health Policy Research Granting Agency: George Washington University and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation |
8/1/2016 - 7/31/2017 | Understanding Interventions Index - 3rd Year Continuation Granting Agency: Long Island University/National Institutes of Health |
2/1/2004 - 1/1/2008 | Center for Population Health and Health Disparities Granting Agency: National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute |
2/1/2004 - 1/1/2006 | Chicago Area Study Granting Agency: National Science Foundation |
2/1/2001 - 1/1/2006 | Acceleration Project Evaluation Granting Agency: Information Technology Resource Center |
2/1/2005 - 1/1/2006 | Project for Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods Granting Agency: Inter-University Consortium for Politcal and Social Research |
2/1/2003 - 1/1/2005 | Faith-Based Initiaitives Granting Agency: Illinois Department of Human Services |
2/1/2002 - 1/1/2005 | Fathers and Families in Distressed Urban Communities Granting Agency: Illinois Work Force Advantage |
2/1/2000 - 1/1/2003 | Workforce Diversity Survey Granting Agency: Illinois Department of Transportation |