Strength lies not in uniformity but in respectful diversity, graduate Zixin Ling said during convocation remarks for Northwestern University’s Master of Science in Social and Economic Policy program at the Ryan Family Auditorium.
Michelle Yin has been elected to the National Academy of Social Insurance, the nation’s leading nonpartisan organization focused on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, disability policy, and related issues in social insurance, workforce, and economic security.
Stories from 2025 that highlight our community, research, and faculty excellence.
Northwestern University’s Uri Wilensky shared his vision for making computational thinking more accessible during the Yidan Prize Awards Ceremony in Hong Kong, where he received the 2025 Yidan Prize for Education Research.
Gail Berger, a former instructor at the School of Education and Social Policy, has passed away. She died peacefully, surrounded by her family.
An overhaul at the Department of Education is set to shift funding for schools serving low-income communities to the Department of Labor, grants for parents attending colleges will go to Health and Human Services, foreign language funding over to State, and Native American education programs to Interior.
School of Education and Social Policy faculty members Paula Olszewski-Kubilius and Susan Corwith, leaders of Northwestern University’s Center for Talent Development, have been recognized for their work in the field of gifted education.
Our new Master's in Technology, People, and Policy program explores how emerging technologies are shaping society—bringing together the technical, human, and policy dimensions of today’s most advanced digital tools.
MacArthur Foundation President John Palfrey was the featured speaker for Northwestern University’s annual Loeschner Leadership Lecture Series.
After we take in information — whether true or not — it’s nearly impossible to avoid using it, Northwestern University psychologist David Rapp explained during the “Science of Reading: The Podcast.”
A new Spencer Foundation report calls for a fresh approach to graduate education to better prepares researchers to improve schools and communities.
Dominique Duval-Diop has joined the faculty for the School of Education and Social Policy's Master’s in Technology, People, and Policy program at Northwestern.
The School Education and Social Policy will continue its longstanding partnership with The Baxter Foundation to strengthen science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education across the Chicagoland area.
A new Northwestern University study shows that students who write in multiple languages can challenge English-centered norms in higher education and highlight often overlooked ways of learning.
John Palfrey, president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, is the featured speaker for the 2025 Ray and Nancy Loeschner Lecture Series on Leadership on Nov. 19 at Northwestern University.
Northwestern University’s Jen Munson has received a five-year, $815,789 CAREER grant from the National Science Foundation to design spaces that make math as enjoyable as recreational reading.
Alumna Izzy Dobbel (BS20), deputy chief of staff for the Illinois House Speaker, was named to the Crain’s Chicago Business 40 Under 40 Class of 2025.
Professor David Uttal received three research grants from the National Science Foundation to advance the science of spatial thinking—an essential yet often overlooked skill that underpins success STEM.
As a freshman, Adrienne Scheide nearly always wore a classic pink beret which made her something of a campus celebrity.
Doug Medin, Professor Emeritus at Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy, received the David E. Rumelhart Prize, the most important award in the field of cognitive science.
Uri Wilensky, a preeminent scholar in computer modeling and simulations, received the 2025 Yidan Prize for Education Research, the world’s largest prize in education.
Senior Adrian Ayala-Perez is making the most out of his opportunities at Northwestern.
Northwestern’s School of Education and Social Policy has launched a new initiative to explore how rapid technological change can be guided by both scientific research and values of fairness, ethics, and social good.
School of Education and Social Policy Dean Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy will speak with Pulitzer Prize-winner Kathleen DuVal during the 40th annual Printers Row Lit Fest—the largest literary festival in the Midwest and one of the longest-running in the country.
Olga Vaskova, a graduate student in the Master of Science in Education and Social Policy Program, earned a $500 prize in the Tzu Chi Center’s Character Education Lesson Plan Competition for her English language arts lesson focused on The Wizard of Oz, one of her daughter’s favorite books.
Northwestern University psychologist Dan P. McAdams has been selected to receive the International Society for Self and Identity’s 2025 Distinguished Lifetime Career Award for his contributions to the understanding of self and identity throughout his academic career.
Aaron Olson and BK Simerson, co-authors of Strategy and Change, will discuss how business leaders can make insightful decisions and manage risk in unpredictable environments.
Zuviriya Anarwala may be preparing to teach English, but that’s just one of six languages she speaks. A self-described “lover of languages,” she also speaks Gujarati (her native language), Hindi, Urdu, Turkish and Arabic.
Tre Wells, a Northwestern University doctoral candidate, received an AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research for 2025–26.
When Julia Narvaez Munguia arrived at Northwestern, she faced a tough decision: journalism or education and social policy?
More than two dozen of the world’s most promising emerging scholars in science education gathered at Northwestern University's Evanston campus for the 2025 Sandra K. Abell Institute for Doctoral Students.
California has not rebounded to pre-pandemic life expectancy, based on early data obtained from the state, according to new research published in the medical journal JAMA Open.
High school teachers bond over shared political beliefs, according to a new study by Melanie Muskin, a PhD candidate in human development and social policy.
Northwestern University celebrated the distinguished careers of Dean Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy and Professor Megan Bang during investiture ceremonies that recognized their groundbreaking contributions to education, access, and community-centered research.
Sarah Futa was a 45-year-old single mom of four when she returned to graduate school to refresh her skills and reclaim a part of herself that had long been missing.
A dozen new PhDs were honored and gifted regalia before the 2025 convocation celebration during the second annual doctoral robing ceremony at Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy.
Northwestern University’s Katarzyna (Kasia) Pomian Bogdanov, who just received her doctorate in learning sciences from the School of Education and Social Policy, received a 2025 Jhumki Basu Scholar Award from the National Association for Research in Science Teaching.
Graduating senior Kaylyn Ahn, one of the most decorated students in SESP history, received the Outstanding Undergraduate Leadership Award from Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy.
Award-winning writer and choreographer Larissa FastHorse encouraged graduates to say “no” at times when others may feel forced into a “yes” during her 2025 convocation address at Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy.
Amanda Litman is on a mission to help young people run for political office. For the brave souls who do, she offers a warning: Prepare to be unpopular.
From Olympic competition to record-breaking performances on campus, Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy athletes balanced academics and elite competition during the 2024-25 school year.
Applications are open for Northwestern University’s new Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics (MOD) for recent college graduates seeking to become leaders in learning, change, and innovation across today’s complex workplaces.
Undergraduate researchers examined everything from consumer behavior and supports for dyslexic students to whether Hawai’i is truly a paradise as part of their senior thesis research projects.
Seniors Lillian Fu, Mia Xia, and Adrienne Scheide were honored for their research at Northwestern University’s Undergraduate Research & Arts Expo, which celebrates the accomplishments and discoveries of undergraduates through poster presentations and curated student panel talks.
SESP senior Binhao Wu’s research looking at social identity and perception won Top Oral Presentation at the Chicago Area Undergraduate Research Symposium, one of the largest annual undergraduate research conferences in the country.
Four high school educators who left a deep imprint on their students’ lives will be honored with the prestigious Morton Schapiro Distinguished Secondary School Teacher Award during Northwestern University’s 2025 Convocation ceremony on Sunday, June 15.
The Indian town of Pithoragarh is nestled in the hills beneath the towering and picturesque Himalayas. Decades ago, Gautam Bisht’s grandmother moved away from this region to seek a better education and more opportunities for her family.
Northwestern undergraduates wrestled with complex challenges in early childhood education before presenting policy recommendations to the Mayor's Office.
A new Northwestern University-powered scholarship initiative is designed to help Evanston students find and join high-quality after-school or summer programs.
The BitCrush Music + Code Competition, a new kind of performance, debuts on May 10 at the Fleetwood-Jourdain Community Center in Evanston as part of a day celebrating science, technology engineering, math and music.
Michael Horn was awarded the Charles Deering Professor of Teaching Excellence Award for his innovative approach to computer science and his ability to inspire a lifelong love of learning—a critical skill in our rapidly changing world.
Bathtubs can help us understand what’s happening in the labor market, Northwestern University economist Kirabo Jackson said in a piece that aired on the radio program Marketplace, which focuses on business and the economy.
An upcoming Northwestern University symposium will examine the influence of artificial intelligence on teachers, students and learning environments.
Professor Cynthia Coburn was one of nine Northwestern University faculty members elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies.
Faculty, alumni and and students will showcase their research at the 2025 American Educational Research Association’s meeting in Denver.
Trailblazing playwright and choreographer Larissa FastHorse, whose work blends sharp humor with social commentary, will deliver the 2025 convocation address.
Zenzile Riddick, whose research straddles education, history and Black Studies, has joined the School of Education and Social Policy as assistant professor of human development and social policy.
Bryan Brayboy, Dean of Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy and the Carlos Montezuma Professor, will deliver a keynote for the 7th annual Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR) research symposium.
Chicago middle school students explored virtual welding, robotics, and more at FUSE FUTURES, a celebration of science, technology, engineering, arts and math programs and career paths at Richard J. Daley College.
Sociologist Angela Dixon, whose current research investigates how lives and families are transformed by loss, has joined Northwestern's School of Education and Social Policy as assistant professor of learning sciences.
Tre Wells, a graduate student studying human development and social policy, has been selected for the Edward Alexander Bouchet Graduate Honor Society, which recognizes outstanding scholarly achievement and excellence in doctoral education.
Tech policy experts Nicol Turner Lee and Nik Marda will be teaching classes for the School of Education and Social Policy’s newest offering, the Master’s in Technology, People, and Policy program.
The current anti-DEI movement relies on a decades-old playbook that frames equity programs and policy as a threat to the excellence of colleges, according to new research co-authored by Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy political scientist Quinn Mulroy.
Undergraduate students will be able to complete their practicum through the Global Engagement Summer Institute (GESI) study abroad program beginning in summer of 2025.
Early exposure to civic education is essential to a functioning society, but it’s often taught too late in life or not at all, according to Matt Easterday, associate professor of learning sciences at Northwestern's School of Education and Social Policy.
Alumna Stefanie DeLuca (PhD02), a sociologist at Johns Hopkins University and one of the nation’s leading experts on housing mobility, vouchers, and policy will be joining Northwestern’s Institute for Policy Research as its inaugural visiting scholar in May 2025.
School of Education and Social Policy alumna and basketball standout Nia Coffey (BS17) was one of nine Wildcats inducted into the Northwestern Athletics Hall of Fame.
In a world where academics and stand-up comics rarely share the stage, the new podcast A Professor and a Comedian Walk Into a Bar is doing something unique: mixing scholarly insights with humor.
Northwestern University’s Nichole Pinkard (PhD98), who has spent her life helping young people find and access learning opportunities in their community, was among 22 exceptional scholars elected to the prestigious National Academy of Education.
When professor Kirabo Jackson first arrived at the White House last year, he had flashbacks to his intense grad school days.
Northwestern University senior Maya Alexandra Vuchic, a student in the School of Education and Social Policy, has been named a Student Laureate by the Lincoln Academy of Illinois for her work in community and civic engagement.
Five faculty members from Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy were named to the 2025 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings for their work bringing research out of academic journals and into everyday lives.
Americans are living longer lives. Some view this as a gift, others – not so much. Why?