Meet Alejandra Frausto Aceves: PhD
July 13, 2026
Alejandra Frausto Aceves (PhD26) used hands-on, community-involved methods to study how diasporic families engage in sophisticated teaching and learning.
News
Postdoctoral Scholars Win New Fellowship
July 9, 2026
School of Education and Social Policy postdoctoral scholars Karla Thomas and briana rodríguez received 2026 National Academy of Education /Spencer Research Fellowships.
Meet Lara Altman: PhD
July 9, 2026
Lara Altman came to SESP after nearly 15 years working at the intersection of education, public health, and social work, leading initiatives focused on improving outcomes for children and families.
Green Wins Presidential Fellowship
July 3, 2026
Peri Green, a learning sciences graduate student at the School of Education and Social Policy, received Northwestern's prestigious Presidential Fellowship for her work exploring how a child’s environment can create or reduce opportunities for learning.
A Century of Learning and Leading
July 1, 2026
In 1926, the legendary U.S. Route 66 was established, A. A. Milne published his beloved children's book Winnie-the-Pooh, and Henry Ford implemented a pioneering 40-hour work week at his automobile factory.
First-Ever NetLogo Conference Comes to Chicago
June 19, 2026
The first-ever NetLogo user conference for both researchers and K-12 teachers runs June 29 to July 1 in Chicago at the University of Illinois at Chicago, bringing together the diverse communities of NetLogo users and agent-based modelers to share, learn, and make connections.
Northwestern Expands NetLogo's Reach with New Center
June 19, 2026
Northwestern University has launched a new center to improve and maintain NetLogo, a widely used scientific and educational software tool, and to promote literacy in scientific modeling.
Awards Round Up: Fellowships, Awards, and NCAA Titles
June 18, 2026
When alumna Maddie Zimmer arrived in Evanston in 2020, Northwestern’s field hockey team hadn’t reached a Final Four in 26 years.
Third Annual Robing Ceremony Honors PhDs
June 17, 2026
Fourteen new PhDs were honored and gifted regalia before the 2026 convocation celebration during the third annual doctoral robing ceremony at Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy.
Kumar Wins Fulbright Award
June 17, 2026
Northwestern University’s Anusha Kumar, an honors student who studied social policy, received a U.S. Student Fulbright Award to teach English in Linz, Austria.
SESP Convocation 2026: 'Mama, We Made It!'
June 17, 2026
Graduating seniors Sara Peña Figueroa and Denzel Higiro emceed 2026 Convocation ceremonies, closing in unison with the cheer "Mama, we made it!" — a reference to a career-focused podcast Higiro started at The Garage.
2025-2026: A Year of Learning, Leading, and Policy
June 15, 2026
From our highest-ever U.S. News & World Report ranking to the first graduates of two news master's programs, it was a breakthrough year at the School of Education and Social Policy.
Honors Class of 2026
June 11, 2026
Lea Kalkowski's senior honors thesis grew from her experience interning at a legal advocacy nonprofit. After helping more than 70 people through the process of expungement — clearing a criminal conviction from the record — Kalkowski wanted to dig deeper into the issues around implementing policy.
Should AI Be Measuring AI?
June 8, 2026
Is your career ‘AI-proof?’ If you’re asking the technology itself for the answer, it can depend on which model you use, according to a new study coauthored by economist Michelle Yin.
Madison Taylor Wins 2026 Tewaaraton Award
June 3, 2026
Northwestern University’s Madison Taylor, a graduating senior in the School of Education and Social Policy, was named the 2026 winner of the Tewaaraton Award, the most coveted individual honor in collegiate lacrosse.
Can Creativity and AI Coexist?
May 29, 2026
Charles Logan (PhD26) had just finished encouraging his audience to resist using artificial intelligence and “learn from the Luddites” when a voice called out from the back of the room.
Coburn Wins Walder Award
May 28, 2026
Cynthia Coburn, the Margaret Walker Alexander Professor of Human Development and Social Policy, received the Martin E. and Gertrude G. Walder Award for Research Excellence.
Vossoughi Named ISLS Fellow
May 27, 2026
Shirin Vossoughi, associate professor of learning sciences at the School of Education and Social Policy, has been elected a fellow of the International Society of Learning Sciences for her work studying how and why people learn.
Fifth Graders Compete at BitCrush
May 14, 2026
Northwestern's Tangible Interaction Design and Learning Laboratory hosted its second annual BitCrush showcase, where Evanston/Skokie School District 65 fifth graders presented music projects created with Python code.
Graduate Students Awarded Dissertation Fellowships
May 14, 2026
Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy graduate students Andrew Stein and Corey Winchester have received highly competitive NAEd/Spencer Dissertation Fellowships to support their research and career development.
Why Do High Schoolers See Block-Based Coding as "Not Real"?
May 13, 2026
New Northwestern University research suggests negative perceptions about block-based programming can be challenged.
In Memoriam: Allan Collins
May 11, 2026
Northwestern University Professor Emeritus Allan Meakin Collins, a major force in the field of learning sciences and cognitive science, died April 20, 2026, after a short illness. He was 88 years old.
Connor Wong: Making Room for Young Leaders
April 28, 2026
Connor Wong was in middle school when he first tried to sell his own stationery and hit a wall. Etsy and eBay had fees and required users to be older. Farmers markets charged $500 for a booth. Nobody was making room for kids.
Entrepreneur Jamie Sahara to Deliver 2026 Convocation Address
April 27, 2026
Entrepreneur and alumnus Jamie Sahara, one of the world’s sharpest thinkers in insurance and risk management, will deliver the 2026 convocation address for Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy.
Brayboy Elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
April 22, 2026
School of Education and Social Policy Dean Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy, the Carlos Montezuma Professor, was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation's oldest and most prestigious honorary societies.
Brayboy Champions Abundance Over Scarcity in AERA Lecture
April 10, 2026
The history of American schooling is tied to the forced removal of Indigenous peoples — and U.S. institutions must confront that legacy to build a fairer, more just future, School of Education and Social Policy Dean Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy said during the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Distinguished Lecture, one of the signature events of the 2026 Annual Meeting.
Undergraduate Named Student Worker of the Year
April 10, 2026
School of Education and Social Policy senior Timothy Huff was named a Northwestern University Student Employee of the Year in Community and Belonging for his leadership work with Black Men LEAD, a mentoring program at Evanston Township High School.
SESP Grad Wins $100,000 on Shark Tank
April 9, 2026
Alumna Sloane Barry (BS22) and partner Brennan Hellmers appeared on Shark Tank, pitching SOMNIA+, a bed expander kit designed to make narrow dorm beds more functional and comfortable without replacing the mattress or using tools.
SESP Ranked No. 2 by U.S. News
April 6, 2026
Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy (SESP) has earned its highest-ever ranking — No. 2 among graduate schools of education in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report.
Vakil Helps Shape National AI Curriculum
March 31, 2026
Northwestern University Professor Sepehr Vakil contributed to a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine that offers strategies for integrating data and computing into K-12 education.
Destin Joins Carnegie Foundation Push to Improve High School
March 31, 2026
Professor Mesmin Destin was named a senior fellow with the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, joining a national effort to bridge the gap between what young people need to thrive and what high school currently delivers.
SESP Scholars Head to Los Angeles for AERA 2026
March 30, 2026
Scholars from Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy will address Indigenous futures, AI justice, climate, democracy, and the ongoing effort to improve education at the 2026 American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting in Los Angeles.
Ecford Named to Bouchet Honor Society
March 23, 2026
Ozivell Ecford, a learning sciences graduate student at Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy, has been selected for the 2026 Edward Alexander Bouchet Graduate Honor Society, which recognizes outstanding scholarly achievement and excellence in doctoral education.
More Money, Worse Results?
March 6, 2026
Mississippi spends less than half of what New Jersey does on education. Yet its fourth-graders perform better on standardized reading and math tests. Kirabo Jackson explains why.
Nuamah Earns Coveted Bellagio Residency
March 6, 2026
Northwestern University professor Sally Nuamah has been selected as a 2026 Bellagio Center resident by the Rockefeller Foundation — a prestigious 26-day residency on the shores of Lake Como, Italy.
Life Isn't a Stage. It's a Story
March 4, 2026
Humans have a habit of dividing life into stages, but are these categories really useful or meaningful? In a recent New Yorker piece, SESP psychologist Dan P. McAdams tells writer Shayla Love that traditional life stages are limiting.
Are We Having Fun Yet?
March 3, 2026
They call it work for a reason: It’s drudgery, something to slog through until payday. Or maybe you love your job—work is your passion, your identity and nearly all you do. Alumna Bree Groff (MSLOC14) offers a third way to think about how we spend five-sevenths of our week: What if work were simply more fun?
Seeing Social Policy Up Close in Bronzeville
March 2, 2026
Professor Lauren Tighe’s Child and Family Policy class took one of Dilla’s Mahogany Tours through Bronzeville on the South Side, connecting the policy they learned in the classroom with the communities those ideas shape.
Brayboy to Deliver AERA Distinguished Lecture
February 17, 2026
School of Education and Social Policy Dean Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy has been selected to deliver the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Distinguished Lecture, one of the signature events of the 2026 Annual Meeting.
Fungi: Web of Life
February 17, 2026
Fungi and their vast, unseen networks can teach us a thing or two about relationships and well-being, professor Carrie Tzou (PhD08) said after a free screening of the documentary “Fungi: Web of Life” in Annenberg Hall.
Fitzgerald Wins Academic All-American Honors
February 9, 2026
Northwestern redshirt junior safety Robert Fitzgerald earned College Sports Communicators First Team Academic All-American honors. Fitzgerald, who is studying learning and organizational change, is the first Wildcat football student-athlete to receive Academic All-America honors since Josh Priebe was named to the first team in 2023
Emotional Well-Being in a Wired World
February 5, 2026
Smartphones and social media are making our emotional lives “choppier” by speeding up and intensifying the information we receive, stress researcher Emma Adam said during a recent Northwestern University conference on social and emotional well-being in a digital world.
Juniper Shelley: Around the World in 70 Days
February 4, 2026
Juniper Shelley once thought the “cool” research happened in windowless STEM labs, not in the social sciences. But after joining Professor Sally Nuamah’s lab, she realized research can also mean getting out into the world, talking to people, and exploring challenging questions.
Research-Practice Partnerships: Stories of Impact
February 3, 2026
The National Network of Research-Practice Partnerships in Education highlighted the impact of a School of Education and Social Policy initiative as part of its annual look at the work of members.
Carrie Tzou Joins SESP Faculty
January 27, 2026
Alumna Carrie Tzou (PhD08), whose career has focused on helping students and educators feel connected to science and place-based learning, has joined Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy as a professor of learning sciences and associate dean.
Undergrads Named Block Student Associates
January 19, 2026
Undergraduates Keya Soni Chaudhuri and Symone Harris have been named to the 2025-2026 cohort of Block Museum Student Associates at Northwestern University.
Faculty Influence Recognized in Annual Rankings
January 13, 2026
Four faculty members and an associated scholar with 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 life.