Feonix Mobility Pilot Program Evaluation

The University of Michigan Youth Policy Lab (YPL), U-M Education Policy Institute (EPI), and the Wayne State University College of Education are submitting a proposal to Detroit Promise and the Kresge Foundation to conduct an impact analysis of the Detroit Promise-Feonix Mobility Wallet pilot program across its initial rollout at Henry Ford College. The Detroit Promise-Feonix Mobility Wallet provides funds to Detroit-area college students that can be used to access a variety of local transportation options. Students and college coaches in the Detroit region consistently point to the lack of reliable transportation within and around the city of Detroit as an obstacle preventing greater success rates in higher education. This evaluation will include developing and pre-registering an analysis plan; administering student surveys on academic and transportation reliability outcomes to program participants and a control group of students at Henry Ford College; administering surveys of student experiences among program participants; interviewing Detroit Promise coaches; and conducting a preliminary analysis of Feonix usage and geospatial mobility patterns. The evaluation will culminate in an interim report (December 2026) that synthesizes early implementation findings, student experiences, and preliminary estimates of the programs effects on transportation reliability, basic needs security, and short term college persistence indicators.