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Make Program Innovation Your Recruitment Advantage
PPIA connects your program’s distinctive strengths to high-achieving students nationwide.
Students are searching for programs that are bold, relevant, and forward-thinking. PPIA helps ensure they find yours. By featuring your program innovations on our national platform, we help you attract students who are eager to engage with new models, hands-on learning, and impactful career pathways in public service.
Program Innovation Example
AI Is Redefining Public Policy University of Chicago Harris School Is Building the Tools at the Bike Shop
Why the “Bike Shop”?
The name draws from the idea of computers as “bicycles for the mind.” A bicycle extends physical capability. In the same way, the Bike Shop develops technology that extends the reach, consistency, and effectiveness of policymakers working in complex environments.
These are tools designed to expand human judgment and strengthen how public decisions are made.
"Our goal is to turn breakthrough research into scalable tools governments can adopt and replicate"
Ethan Bueno de Mesquita
Interim Dean, Harris School of Public Policy
Public policy decisions shape everything from public safety to economic mobility. As artificial intelligence becomes more sophisticated, governments face a critical question: how can they use these technologies responsibly, effectively, and at scale?
At the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy, that question led to the creation of the Bike Shop @UChicago, a bold initiative focused on advancing algorithmic public policy.
Backed by a transformative $20 million investment, the Bike Shop integrates artificial intelligence, behavioral science, and data science to design systems governments can actually use.
What Is Algorithmic Public Policy?
At Harris, algorithmic public policy means building AI tools that:
- Improve public safety decisions.
- Strengthen education and workforce policy.
- Allocate resources more effectively.
- Scale proven solutions across jurisdictions.
These tools are built to strengthen evidence-based governance and translate research into operational systems that public institutions can use.
The initiative is led by Jens Ludwig, Distinguished Service Professor at Harris and Director of the University of Chicago Crime Lab, in collaboration with leading researchers and institutional partners.
Why This Matters for Students
The Bike Shop reflects Harris’ broader commitment to translating scholarship into systems that governments can use. It represents a model for how public policy schools can lead responsibly in an AI-driven era.
At Harris, students are studying AI in public policy while actively contributing to the systems shaping its future.
- Contribute to AI-driven research projects.
- Collaborate with nationally recognized faculty.
- Translate research into tools governments can deploy.
- Build career-ready skills at the intersection of technology and public impact.
The field of public policy is evolving rapidly. Harris students are learning how to lead in that environment.
By The Numbers
$20M investment
Interdisciplinary AI +
behavioral science collaboration
Tools built for real government deployment
Led by nationally recognized faculty
If you are ready to help design the next generation of public policy tools, the Harris School offers a place to begin.
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