Today, the Texas Public Policy Foundation announced that Michael Shires, Associate Professor of Public Policy at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy, is the new Visiting Senior Fellow for the Foundation’s Next Generation Texas initiative. Shires, also the Associate Dean for Strategy and Special Projects at Pepperdine, is a leading expert on California’s Proposition 13 and school finance.

“We are thrilled to have Michael Shires on our team working to improve education for all Texas students,” said Lucy Meckler, campaign manager for TPPF’s Next Generation Texas initiative. “When instruction is evolving so rapidly in the face of the pandemic, and families are getting more involved than ever in their children’s schooling, it is vital to continue to advocate for policies which help our students succeed. We are confident that Michael will help us lead Texas in the right direction.”

“It is an honor and privilege to join TPPF as it works with Texans and its government to preserve economic opportunity and freedom while improving the quality of life for all,” said Shires. “The issues I will work on here will help Texas continue to lead by example in education and public finance in the years to come.”

Before joining the Pepperdine faculty, Dr. Michael Shires was the first research fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California and a doctoral fellow at RAND’s Graduate School of Policy Studies, concentrating on domestic education policy, California fiscal policy, and international trade policy. Before that, he both worked in and consulted with a wide range of startup companies as they built new processes and technologies that introduced emerging technologies to create new business practices.