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Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion News

Nuamah's Latest Book Named PROSE Award Finalist

March 20, 2024

Sally Nuamah’s latest book, Closed for Democracy, which examines how closing public schools can influence democracy, was named a finalist for the 2024 Professional and Scholarship Excellence (PROSE) Award in the government and politics division.

When Black Boys Have Black Teachers

March 08, 2024

Black teachers are less likely to identify same race students as needing special education services, according to new research by Northwestern University alumni Cassandra Hart (PhD11) and Constance Lindsay (PhD10).

Megan Bang: 'Indian law is American law'

February 22, 2024

Native scholars and law professionals, including School of Education and Social Policy Dean Bryan Brayboy and professor Megan Bang, participated in the conference “100 Years Back, 100 Years Forward: Sovereignty, Community, and Indigenous Futures,” at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law.

Worsley Named Jacobs Fellow

February 01, 2024

Northwestern University’s Marcelo Worsley has been named a research fellow with the Jacobs Foundation to support his work helping students learn computer science through sports.

Researchers to Study School Reform in Evanston

February 01, 2024

Northwestern University researchers received a five-year, $4.5 million dollar grant from the National Science Foundation to study racial equity, STEM education, and school reform in Evanston.

Headshot of OiYan Poon

Affirmative Action: In Conversation With OiYan Poon

January 09, 2024

Scholar and author OiYan Poon will lead a conversation about race, education, and leadership for a diverse democracy in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to strike down race-conscious college admissions.

Headshots of Tabitha Bonilla

Faculty Member Lauded for Mentorship

January 04, 2024

Tabitha Bonilla received the 2023 Adaljiza Sosa-Riddell Mentor Award from the American Political Science Association for her tireless support of Latino/a graduate students in political science.

Ruha Benjamin

Ruha Benjamin to Deliver Loeschner Leadership Lecture

November 29, 2023

Sociologist and author Ruha Benjamin, whose latest book argues that seemingly small efforts can help build a more just and joyful world, is the featured speaker for Northwestern University’s Nancy and Ray Loeschner Leadership Lecture Series and its Distinguished Public Policy Lecture Series on Tuesday, Jan. 23, at 7 p.m.

student on camera

New Dual Degree Combines Social Policy + Journalism

September 12, 2023

In response to the rapidly changing journalism industry, Northwestern University has launched a new five-year dual degree program between the School of Education and Social Policy (SESP) and Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications.

teacher demonstrating device to students

STEAMbassadors: ‘Part of Something Bigger’

August 10, 2023

As a summer STEAMbassador, Patricia Richards was trained to teach children how to code. Ultimately, she improved her own technical skills, but what she loved most was watching the youngsters break into smiles after mastering something new.

Ana Paula Melo and Tommy Wells

E4 Welcomes New Visiting Scholars

August 09, 2023

Scholars Ana Paula Melo and Tommy Wells have been named early career visiting fellows at Northwestern University's Center for Education Efficacy, Excellence, and Equity (E4) for the 2023-24 academic year.

Aireale J. Rodgers speaking

‘Is a PhD for Me?'

June 19, 2023

Most people have heard the term ‘PhD,’ and they know that getting one is an outstanding accomplishment. But few picture themselves on this journey.

Youth Guidance’s Working on Womanhood discussion session

Counseling Program Reduces Teen Girls’ PTSD Symptoms

June 19, 2023

School-based group counseling programs can significantly reduce post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression among Black and Latina girls, according to new research co-authored SESP economist Jonathan Guryan.

Victor Ray and Andrew Stein

Victor Ray Speaks On Critical Race Theory at SESP Equity Book Club Event

April 19, 2023

Sociologist and author Victor Ray recently spoke to students, faculty, and staff of Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy (SESP) during an extensive conversation on his latest book On Critical Race Theory: Why it Matters and Why We Should care.

Judy Heumann

Honoring 'the Mother' of the Disability Rights Movement

March 21, 2023

Northwestern University's Jen Cowhy, a doctoral student in the Human Development and Social Policy program at the School of Education and Social Policy, helped coauthor a joint statement recognizing the work and legacy of Judy Heumann for the American Educational Research Association.

Edwin Pokisa

Honey, Beads, and Peace for the Yaaku

March 20, 2023

Northwestern University’s Edwin Pokisa, a member of the Yaaku tribe in Kenya, received a $10,000 Projects for Peace grant to implement a honey-harvesting and bead making project in his hometown of Doldol in Laikipia County.

Ahmmad Brown

Lessons from the Rooney Rule

February 16, 2023

The spectacular rise and fall of the public’s perception of the Rooney Rule, which originally required NFL teams to interview at least one diverse candidate for head coaching jobs, offers valuable lessons for organizational leaders, Ahmmad Brown wrote in Forbes.

Michael Horn

Mike Horn Wins Linzer Award

February 13, 2023

Northwestern University’s Michael Horn received the 2023 Daniel Linzer Award for Faculty Excellence in Diversity and Equity for finding creative ways to make coding fun and accessible.

Mesmin Destin

Mesmin Destin: Messages That Can Change a Child’s Life

January 19, 2023

Whether the timing is intentional or serendipitous, hearing certain messages at critical moments can offer hope and keep people inspired to work towards their goals, Northwestern University’s Mesmin Destin said during a TEDxChicago talk at the Harris Theater.

Victor Ray

SESP Equity Book Club: A Conversation with Victor Ray

January 18, 2023

Sociologist and author Victor Ray will discuss his latest book On Critical Race Theory: Why It Matters & Why You Should Care during the first SESP Equity Book Club Series lecture of the 2022-23 academic year.

Jen Munson

Off You Go: A Routine for Culturally Responsive Math

January 15, 2023

A visually rich mathematical routine for teachers leverages a child’s background and helps students build bridges between school math and culture, according to an article co-authored by assistant professor Jen Munson.

SESP faculty group shot

SESP in the Media: January 2023

January 02, 2023

An ongoing, monthly roundup of appearances in the media by School of Education and Social Policy faculty, researchers, and our community.

Jue Wu

Researchers Develop Novel Way to Assess DEI Programs

November 28, 2022

A systematic planning tool called “change mapping” can help analyze whether complex diversity, equity, and inclusion programs or initiatives are working, according to new research by Northwestern University alumna Jue Wu (PhD21).

Michelle Yin

New Grant Assesses Ending the Subminimum Wage

November 03, 2022

Northwestern University economist Michelle Yin has received a $4.29 million grant from the US Department of Education to assess a Virginia intervention designed to end the practice of paying less than the minimum wage to people with disabilities.

Erica Young and Bill Healy

Belonging: A New Podcast for Teachers

September 27, 2022

When Georgia middle school teacher Erica Young approached a white colleague about her use of the phrase “cotton picking”, the conversation promised to be tense.

children in a classroom

What Happens When More Four-Year-Olds Attend Preschool?

August 23, 2022

Northwestern University researchers, in partnership with Chicago Public Schools, the Office of the Mayor of Chicago, and the Chicago Department of Family Support and Services, are studying how the recent expansion of universal prekindergarten in Chicago will impact students from lower income backgrounds.

Julissa Muñiz

Graduate Students Honored for Leadership, Scholarship

June 17, 2022

Julissa Muñiz, who earned her PhD in Human Development and Social Policy, was named the School of Education and Social Policy's Outstanding Alumna, in part for founding the first graduate student organization for Latinx students, Comunidad Latinx.

Anna Witcoff, Tanya Bhargava, and Sydney Goldstein join Clarence and Wendy Weaver

Civic Engagement: Learning to Make a Difference

June 12, 2022

Students in Northwestern University’s Civic Engagement Certificate Program partnered with the Rotary Club of Evanston and C & W Market to help fight local food insecurity.

Leigh Patel

SESP Equity Book Club: Leigh Patel

May 04, 2022

Author and professor Leigh Patel will discuss her latest book No Study Without Struggle: Confronting Settler Colonialism in Higher Education during the final SESP Equity Book Club Series event of the 2021-22 academic year.

Marcia Walker-McWilliams

Alumni Spotlight: Marcia McWalker-Williams

May 03, 2022

Northwestern University alumna Marcia Walker-McWilliams (BS06) is executive director of the Black Metropolis Research Consortium at the University of Chicago and the author of Reverend Addie Wyatt: Faith and the Fight for Labor, Gender, and Racial Equality. She is also a board member of the Digital Public Library of America.

Tamica Daniel

Alumni Spotlight: Tamica Daniel

April 29, 2022

Tamica Daniel (BS03) is a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice who works on civil rights issues in housing, lending, public accommodations, and education. She majored in social policy and minored in African American Studies at the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.

Professor Cynthia Coburn

Faculty Contribute to New IES Report on Future of Ed Research

April 15, 2022

The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) should change its structures and policies to better meet changing priorities in education – including improving equity and the usefulness of research, according to a new report whose authors include several Northwestern University faculty members.

Shirin Vossoughi interacting with a student

Vossoughi Named One of Northwestern's Best Teachers

April 15, 2022

Shirin Vossoughi was honored with a Northwestern University Teaching Award for bringing justice-oriented, intergenerational, and collaborative teaching to a new level and for championing the “half-baked idea.”

Megan Bang, Carrie Tzou, Shirin Vossoughi, Sepehr Vakil

Researchers Tackle Inequity in STEM Education

November 16, 2021

Four School of Education and Social Policy researchers and alums will help address systemic inequities in PreK-12 STEM education as part of an esteemed National Academies’ committee.

Addie Shrodes

Shrodes Wins AAUW Dissertation Fellowship

November 12, 2021

Graduate student Addie Shrodes has received a highly competitive American Dissertation Fellowship from the American Association of University Women (AAUW) to support her work looking at how trans and queer teens learn critical digital literacies through everyday activities on social media.

Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy

Brayboy Challenges SESP to Reimagine Education for Indigenous Students

June 09, 2021

Scholars have an important opportunity­ and responsibility to help transform schools into a system that supports Indigenous students, Arizona State University (ASU) professor Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy (Lumbee) said during the latest installment of the School of Education and Social Policy Equity Book Club.

Tabitha Bonilla

Bonilla Develops New Class With Equity and Diversity Grant

April 29, 2021

Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy professor Tabitha Bonilla has developed a new undergraduate class that explores how looking at identities as 'intersectional' shifts our understanding of policy.

students from overhead

Presence of Immigrant Students Boosts Test Scores for All

April 25, 2021

U.S.-born students with high exposure to immigrants in their schools scored better on math and reading tests than similar students with low exposure to immigrants, according to a working paper co-authored by School of Education and Social Policy Dean David Figlio and published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Destin Lab students

A Sneak Peek Inside the Destin Lab

April 21, 2021

Northwestern University social psychologist Mesmin Destin, a recent Guggenheim Fellow selection, explores how the presumed “disadvantages” related to students’ backgrounds can carry unrecognized strengths, Kirsten Weir wrote in “Finding Strength in Hardship.”

young student holding chalk and thinking

Evanston Debuts Teacher Residency Program

April 15, 2021

In partnership with Northwestern University and National Louis University, Evanston/Skokie School District 65 has formed a teacher residency program to address achievement gaps, reduce local teacher shortages, and increase the diversity of the local teaching workforce.

Addie Shrodes

Grad Student Develops New Courses for Gender and Sexuality Studies

February 25, 2021

School of Education and Social Policy graduate student Addie Shrodes will be teaching two courses she designed for Northwestern University’s Gender and Sexuality Studies (GSS) program, Everyday Resistance and Reimagination and Queer and Trans Technology, Play, and Protest.

Bettina Love

Bettina Love: 'Eliminate Oppression From the Root'

January 29, 2021

Bettina L. Love, author and the Athletic Association Endowed Professor at the University of Georgia, recently spoke to nearly 400 members of the SESP community during a wide-ranging conversation focused on race, racism, justice, joy, love, and equity.

Heather Foster

Alumna Heather Foster: Making the World a Better Place

January 21, 2021

SESP alumna Heather Foster (BS03), a political strategist and expert on race and public policy issues, was among three alumni honored by the Northwestern University Black Alumni Association during its annual meeting.

Bettina L. Love

Abolitionist Teaching: A Conversation with Bettina L. Love

January 04, 2021

Bettina L. Love, the Athletic Association Endowed Professor at the University of Georgia who coined the term “abolitionist teaching,” will discuss race, education, and activism in a webinar hosted by Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy.

Mesmin Destin

Inequality and the ‘American Dream’

August 05, 2020

SESP's Kirabo (“Bo”) Jackson has been honored with the David N. Kershaw Award by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management for his path-breaking work on school finance reform and teacher effectiveness.

Book cover

'Provocative’ Book Calls for Feminist Schools

July 03, 2020

How Girls Achieve by Northwestern University’s Sally Nuamah “provides an original lens on gendered educational inequalities and ways of dismantling them,” Rachel Marcus wrote in the journal Gender & Development.

book covers

Where Do I Begin? Alumna Creates Daily Reading Plan

June 09, 2020

Outraged by the murder of George Floyd and the systems that devastate black, indigenous, and communities of color, alumna Amy Sanchez (BS15) curated a 28-day reading plan that includes accessible news stories, podcasts, and videos on institutional racism, white supremacy, policing, protesting and more.

David Harris

Do You Know What It’s Like?

June 09, 2020

SESP alumnus David Harris (BS91), gives his perspective as a college president and a black man on the events of recent weeks in Minnesota, Central Park and elsewhere in Inside Higher Ed.

Tony Jack on Diversity: 'Access Ain't Inclusion'

October 29, 2019

Colleges and universities must deliberately move from access to inclusion, sociologist Anthony Jack told a crowd of more than 600 people during Northwestern University’s Nancy and Ray Loeschner Leadership Series at Alice Millar Chapel.

Sally Nuamah: The Education Disruptor

September 08, 2019

Education wasn’t a sure thing for Sally Nuamah. Raised by a single mother in a low-income Chicago neighborhood, Nuamah was the child of immigrants, black and female.

Families Are The Solution, Not The Problem

August 09, 2019

Schools need to partner with families and communities to help combat systemic violence against immigrants, people of color, and other marginalized groups, researchers concluded in a new policy memo co-authored by Northwestern University professor Megan Bang.

SESP's Presidential Fellow winners: Mollie McQuillan (l), C.C. DuBois and Heather McCambly

Graduate Student Wins Presidential Fellowship

May 28, 2019

Doctoral candidate Heather McCambly, who researches the forces behind educational inequalities in higher education, received Northwestern University’s most prestigious award for graduate students, the 2019 Presidential Fellowship.

Eve L. Ewing (left), David Figlio, Ray Loeschner. Photos by Steve Drey.

Eve L. Ewing on Leadership, Racial Trauma

April 19, 2019

Eve L. Ewing struggled as a black student at a predominantly white university. But as she learned to cope with the repercussions of racism, she also gained clarity about her relationship with higher education.

Graphic representing the connection of computers and the mind

Vakil: Equity is More Than Inclusion

March 21, 2019

Computer science educators should think more deeply about the ethical, political, and social justice consequences of their work, Northwestern University’s Sepehr Vakil wrote in a commentary published in the March issue of the magazine Communications of the Association for Computer Machinery.

Twins wrapped in pink and blue

The Cost of a Twin Brother

March 18, 2019

Women who shared their mother’s womb with a male twin are less likely to graduate from high school or college, have earned less by their early 30s, and have lower fertility and marriage rates when compared with twins who are both female, according to new Northwestern University research.

Simone Ispa-Landa

Can Female Principals Be Caring and Commanding?

March 02, 2019

White and black novice female principals adopt vastly different leadership styles at the beginning of their careers, according to new Northwestern University research that looks at how race and gender intersect for professional educators.