Spring 2024 Fellow
Michael Tubbs is the Special Advisor to California Governor Gavin Newsom for Economic Mobility and Opportunity; the Founder of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income (MGI); and the Founder of End Poverty in California (EPIC). In 2016, he was elected Mayor of Stockton at 26-years-old. He was the city’s first African-American Mayor, and the youngest Mayor of any major city in American history. As Mayor, Tubbs was lauded for his leadership and innovation. He raised over $20 million dollars to create the Stockton Scholars, a universal scholarship and mentorship program for Stockton students. Additionally, he piloted the first mayor-led guaranteed income pilot in the country.
Under his leadership, Stockton was named an “All-America City” in 2017 and 2018 by the National Civic League. The city saw a 40% drop in homicides in 2018 and 2019, led the state of California in the decline of officer involved shootings in 2019, and was named the second most fiscally healthy city in California. Additionally, it was recognized as one of the most fiscally healthy cities in the nation and was featured in an HBO documentary film, “Stockton on My Mind.”
Tubbs has been named a fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics and The MIT Media Lab, a member of Fortune’s Top 40 under 40, a Forbes 30 under 30 All Star Alumni, the “Most Valuable Mayor” by The Nation, the 2019 New Frontier Award Winner from the JFK Library, and the 2021 Civic Leadership Award winner from The King Center. Prior to his tenure as Mayor, Tubbs served as a Councilmember for the City of Stockton District 6, a high school educator, and a fellow for the Stanford Design School and the Emerson Collective.
On November 16, 2021, Tubbs released “The Deeper The Roots: A Memoir of Hope and Home” published by the Flatiron Books imprint, An Oprah Book. The book—which the LA Times describes as “intimate and insightful”—not only relates Tubbs’ story of growing up in poverty, but lays his vision for leadership and policy that is more empathetic and responsive to people who are struggling.
Study Group: Being a Mayor in the 21st Century — The Room Where it Happens (At Least Locally)
In an era with national partisan gridlock and seemingly intractable problems, Mayors are emerging as political leaders who have to deliver — even without the resources or formal authority to do so. In this study group, Michael Tubbs, the former Mayor of Stockton and the youngest Mayor of a major city ever in the country’s history, will share a practitioner’s perspective on the job of a Mayor, including how to innovate while in government (he launched the country’s first Mayor-led guaranteed income pilot, new models for reducing violence and policing, and countless public-private partnerships) and how to balance good politics with good policy, through case studies and conversations with current and former Mayors.
Tuesdays, 4-6 p.m. PT
January 23
February 6
February 13
February 20
March 5
March 19
March 26