PhD, The Graduate School, 1979
Alumni Merit Award Winner
Very ill throughout her childhood, Barbara Schneider missed half of high school. And left to fill gaps in a spotty education, she struggled early in her academic career. Nevertheless, she overcame the odds to become a renowned educational researcher whose work has been instrumental in advancing the educational and job prospects of the nation’s youth. Now, she is committed to helping those who start their lives at a social or economic disadvantage.
Since earning her PhD from Northwestern, Barbara has led some of the most compelling educational research initiatives of our time, securing $75 million in grants to do so. She has investigated how schools can reduce the achievement gap among students of different backgrounds, studied parental involvement in education, and encouraged more students to pursue education and careers in the STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). Today, interventions based on her research are helping young people make more informed choices about their educational futures.
“My thirst for knowledge began at Northwestern,” Barbara says. “Many of my career accomplishments can be traced to my experiences in the School of Education and Social Policy. Tackling advanced statistical procedures in political science and experimental/evaluation work in psychology, I began to learn how the study of education could be deepened and made more responsive to policy. I also discovered the importance of social context for unpacking issues of school segregation, curricular tracking, and controversies regarding vouchers and private schooling. ”
Today, Barbara is the John A. Hannah Distinguished University Professor at Michigan State University and a senior fellow at the Center for Advancing Research and Communication in STEM.
She is particularly proud of her involvement as principal investigator in the College Ambition Program (CAP). CAP encourages low-income and minority high school students to pursue STEM majors in college, providing resources, mentorship, and guidance to increase students’ options as they move toward adulthood.
As principal investigator of The 500 Family Study, she uncovered valuable insight on how working families manage their children’s moral, social, and educational development while balancing busy lives. Her book, The Ambitious Generation: America’s Teenagers, Motivated but Directionless, analyzed thousands of adolescents, examining how their high expectations for the future matched up with the realities of the workplace.
Barbara says she shares her success with her exceptional students past and present and the many outstanding colleagues who have profoundly influenced her work, including SESP Professor Larry Hedges.
She has been married to her husband, Lewis Schneider, for 45 years. She has two grown daughters and three grandchildren.