SESP Convocation 2026: 'Mama, We Made It!'
Surround yourself with a good culture — people and places that bring out the best in you — alumnus Jamie Sahara told the Class of 2026 during convocation at Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy.
"If it doesn't exist, build it," said Sahara, who learned this lesson the hard way early in his career. "Take risks. Try things. Sometimes they'll work out. Sometimes they won't. But whenever possible, choose happiness, choose to make others feel welcome."
The ceremony for the Class of 2026, held along the picturesque shores of Lake Michigan at Ryan Fieldhouse, celebrated 138 undergraduates who earned a Bachelor of Science in Education and Social Policy, 198 students who earned master's degrees from four programs, and 15 newly minted PhDs.
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In addition to Sahara, speakers included Dean Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy, undergraduate Rayan Tabidi and graduate student Zoe Lewis-Woodson, one of the first to earn her master's in technology, people, and policy. The winners of the Alumni Leadership Award and the Outstanding Faculty and Instructor awards were also named during the celebration.
Graduating seniors Sara Peña Figueroa and Denzel Higiro emceed the event as convocation co-chairs, closing in unison with the cheer "Mama, we made it!" — a reference to a career-focused podcast Higiro started at The Garage.
"I began it after changing from engineering to organizational change when I met an upperclassman whose story helped me see a path that fit me better," Higiro said. "So 'Mama, we made it' is really a celebration of finding our path and making it to this milestone."
'Be a Wolf'
Brayboy, the Carlos Montezuma Professor, tasked graduates with learning from wolves, sneaking in a final lesson about trophic cascades. In 1995, 14 wolves were reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park, sparking a remarkable chain reaction. The wolves hunted elk and deer, allowing stripped riverbanks to reforest, Brayboy said.
Trees stabilized rivers. Beavers built dams. Bears, eagles and hawks thrived. This phenomenon, called a trophic cascade, occurs when a top predator, restored to its ecosystem, transforms everything around it. Across 2.2 million acres, a handful of wolves had quietly reshaped a river.
"Find your pack," he told the crowd. "Nearly a century of social science research backs the idea that individual success is inseparable from the strength of the team. The wolves didn't set out to change an ecosystem. They just showed up and worked together."
'A Good Culture'
Finding your people can help create a working environment that fits, Sahara said. At Northwestern, where he was captain of the tennis team, he began to think about more than his backhand. "I was surrounded by people who were curious, thoughtful and engaged in a different way," he said. "I had stepped into a different kind of environment. A different kind of culture. And that started to change how I saw myself, and what I thought I could become."
But his career path didn't follow a neat line. After getting his third termination notice in 12 years, he sat alone in his car and made a decision: The next 40 years of his life would feel different.
"From then on, I stopped trying to force the things that wouldn't fit," he said. "If I couldn't find the right environment, maybe I needed to build a new one."
Over time, he did. He also found partners and friends who believed in what he was building and wanted to become a part of it.
Now a serial entrepreneur and founder and CEO of Applied Underwriters, Sahara told graduates that as SESP alumni, they wouldn't be folding into existing cultures — they'd be creating them.
"People will look to you, not just for direction, but for how to behave. How to belong. How to fail. How to respond. And how to treat each other," he said. "Many people can come up with a good idea. But what turns a good idea into something real is whether people believe in it. Whether they feel like they're part of something bigger. Because when people feel like they're in the club, they show up differently. That's what makes things work. That's good culture."
More Highlights
Student Leaders Honored: David Kamenetz and Lauren Scriba received Outstanding Leadership Awards from the School of Education and Social Policy.
- Scriba earned her master's in education and specializes in history, psychology and political science, and holds an English as a Second Language certification. She recently student-taught world history and AP Psychology at Glenbrook North High School. Before pursuing her master's and teaching license, she studied psychology and criminal justice and worked as a registered behavior technician. "She's an exceptional educator who asks questions that help students understand what is happening and push others to consider varied perspectives and underlying issues," said Rebekah Stathakis, director of the teacher preparation programs.
- Kamenetz, who majored in social policy and economics, is founder and co-president of Northwestern's branch of 180 Degrees Consulting, which unites students around a common goal of supporting nonprofits and developing the next generation of leaders committed to making a difference. He can "recognize potential in others before they see it in themselves," his nominator wrote. "Truly impactful leaders are defined by the way people grow in their presence. David exemplifies this leadership consistently." After graduation, he will join EY-Parthenon in New York as an associate.
Outstanding Faculty Member: Shirin Vossoughi, associate professor of learning sciences and co-director of the SESP Leadership Institute, was named Outstanding Faculty Member. Vossoughi was recently elected a fellow of the International Society of Learning Sciences for her work studying how and why people learn. Good research is a collaboration, she says, and teachers, families and students are key partners in the work. "She challenges students with rigor and complexity in and outside the classroom, all while centering love, care and play," one nominator wrote. "She is absolutely an outstanding professor who I hope to continue learning from even after my time here on campus."
Outstanding Instructor Award: Mindy Magrane, a psychologist, executive coach and leadership consultant, was honored as Outstanding Instructor. Magrane teaches key courses in learning and organizational change, including Organizational Theory and Practice, a required course with a large impact on how students experience the field. Described as "inspiring, knowledgeable and kind," Magrane is known for her ability to build community. "Her classes are easily the most engaging and thought-provoking ones I've taken in SESP," a nominator wrote. "I have taken her lessons on group and team work to every team I've been a part of."
First graduate: Jackson Carsello, a student-athlete who played for the Wildcats football team, was the first graduate of the Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics program, designed for recent college graduates who want to lead learning, change and innovation across complex workplaces.
Student Speaker Highlights
Mending hearts: Undergraduate speaker Rayan Tabidi, a member of the SESP Leadership Institute, spoke about the power of relationships. "No matter what concentration brought us here, our work has been about people," she said. "It's ultimately measured by the impact it has on the lives of others. We were confronted with the realities of those suffering. In moments like these, we do not look away. It's about who you uplift along the way." Tabidi, a first-generation American born and raised in Boston to Sudanese parents, will join Accenture as a consultant.
Flow like water: Meaningful change is slow, collective and often outlasts the people who fight for it, Zoe Lewis-Woodson said in her graduate student remarks — and that's OK. Using water as a metaphor, she urged graduates to persist in the face of injustice even when they won't live to see results. "Technology arrives looking like progress. Like jobs. Like opportunity. It is also a weight in our neighborhoods, schools, and homes," she said. "It's OK not to see the rock become sand. You can still be a part of what makes it happen. Just keep flowing." Lewis-Woodson, who studied how to keep children safe online, earned her bachelor's from SESP last year. She will work with SparkShop, a nonprofit that brings hands-on materials to fourth- and fifth-grade classrooms.