TEDxNorthwesternU

Speakers

Speakers may not be confirmed. Check the event website for the latest lineup.

• Claudia Haase

  Claudia Haase is a psychological scientist and associate professor at Northwestern University. Alongside a wonderful research team, she seeks to gain a deeper understanding of human emotion, relationships, and life-span development by employing a diverse array of methods (from facial expression analysis to physiological measurement) to a variety of contexts (including individuals, couples, friends, and youth-caregiver dyads). She is also a co-editor of Affective Science, co-director of the Chicago Consortium on Longevity and Center for Responsible Technology, Policy, and Public Dialogue, and Associate Dean for Well-Being at Northwestern’s School of Education and Social Policy.

• Dean Karlan

  Dean Karlan is a Professor of Economics and Finance at Northwestern University and Co-Director of the Global Poverty Research Lab. He is a development and behavioral economist, former Chief Economist of USAID, founder of Innovations for Poverty Action (a research and policy nonprofit that discovers and promotes effective solutions to global poverty), and a former member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of the M.I.T. Jameel Poverty Action Lab. Previously, he was on faculty at Yale University (2005-2017) and Princeton University (2002-2005).

• Jennifer Swanson

  Jennifer Swanson is a dynamic force in the world of children's literature and science education. An award-winning author, podcaster, teacher, speaker, and passionate science communicator, Jennifer’s commitment to education is evident. She spent over fourteen years inspiring young minds as a middle school science teacher and has written over 50 science books for kids. website: https://jenniferswansonbooks.com/

• Kyle MacQuarrie

  Dr. MacQuarrie is a pediatric oncologist and physician-scientist with Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and an assistant professor of pediatrics at Northwestern’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Both his clinical and research interests focus on children with solid tumors, in particular those with sarcomas.

• Nicholas Henner

  Holding a bachelor's degree in Statistics from Northwestern University and a master's degree in Math Education from Stanford University, Nick Henner is a first-year math teacher at New Trier High School. He is an equity driven practitioner with the goal of making math accessible (and fun!) for everyone.

• Punit Kaur

  Punit Kaur is a product management leader, speaker, and musician who brings a deeply human lens to leadership. A Harvard-trained product manager and mother to a child with special needs, she reframes caregiving not as a story of sacrifice, sympathy, or pity, but as a powerful laboratory where empathy, influence, and resilient leadership are forged.