
James Spillane
The Spencer T. and Ann W. Olin Professor in Learning and Organizational Change
James Spillane, an award-winning professor, researcher, and mentor, is serving as part of the Secretariat for the National Convention on Education in Ireland to help shape the future of education in the country.

Kate Cichon
Assistant Director at Center for Talent Development
Kate Cichon was voted SESP’s 2026 Staff Member of the Year for the way she “combines excellence with humility, strength with compassion, and leadership with service.”

Bryan McKinley Jones Brayboy
Dean and Carlos Montezuma Professor
Dean Bryan Brayboy was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, becoming SESP's tenth faculty member to be elected to this prestigious honorary society.

Mark Hoffman
Associate Director for Academic Advising and Enrollment | Higher Education Administration and Policy Program
Mark Hoffman, the father of the SESP Candy Bowl, is an advisor, community builder, policy developer, planner, and advocate. “I believe in the transformative power of higher education,” he says.

Angela Dixon
Assistant Professor of Learning Sciences
Angela Dixon’s research, supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, investigates how lives and families are transformed by loss. She also holds an appointment with Northwestern’s Pritzker School of Law.

Mesmin Destin
Professor of Human Development and Social Policy
Mesmin Destin, the faculty director of student access and enrichment, is a co-founder of the SESP Leadership Institute. He 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.

Sneha Kumar
Assistant Professor of Human Development and Social Policy
Sneha Kumar, a social demographer, won the Distinguished Contribution to Scholarship in Population award from the American Sociological Association for her co-authored article "Who can have a baby? Social norms and the right to reproduce.”

Peri Green
Graduate Student, Learning Sciences
Peri Green received the prestigious Presidential Fellowship for her work exploring how a child’s environment can create or reduce opportunities for learning. “The more people have access to, the more they're able to achieve and become,” Green says.

Ofer Malamud
Professor of Human Development and Social Policy
Ofer Malamud is an economist who draws on global perspectives to inform education policy. He was one of five faculty members named a 2026 Academic Leadership Program fellow at Northwestern.

Shirin Vossoughi
Associate Professor of Learning Sciences
Shirin Vossoughi, the Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence and co-founder of the SESP Leadership Institute, was elected to the International Society of Learning Sciences for her work studying how and why people learn.

Mindy Douthit
Instructor | Master’s of Learning and Organizational Change Program
Mindy Douthit is the faculty director of the SESP Practicum. She is also owned by Winnie, SESP's much-loved therapy dog.