Dear colleagues,

Here we are, already in the final quarter of the 2025-26 academic year. Much has happened since early September, when I started as Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education, and I am continually impressed by the work the Office of Provost does every day to make the Northwestern undergraduate experience exceptional. So, I was delighted when Provost Hagerty asked me to use this space to highlight some recent headlines that demonstrate our impact:

• Serving students with high financial need: It all starts with Admissions, and the team has been working hard to make Northwestern accessible and attractive to high-achieving students from all walks of life, including from rural and small-town communities, where Northwestern has seen more than 30% growth. Once at Northwestern, our students with financial need also can pursue life-changing academic experiences beyond our campuses, with help from the Office of Fellowships and Global Learning opportunities; in fact, Northwestern was recently hailed as one of the nation’s leaders in producing Gilman Scholars.
• Enhancing curriculum to meet a changing world: The Office of the Provost’s Generative AI Advisory Committee will soon evolve into the AI and Education Advisory Committee, recognizing the broad impact of AI on education for all faculty, whether they choose to integrate AI tools into their courses or not. I recently had the opportunity to moderate a discussion with the newly selected Education Pillar leads at Northwestern Network for Collaborative Intelligence (NNCI), Jeremy Gilbert and Sara Sood. This was a great opportunity to discuss the educational initiatives taking shape through partnerships between the Office of the Provost and NNCI.
• Creating opportunities to tackle real-world problems: The inaugural Northwestern Problem Summit, hosted by The Garage on Feb. 28, asked students to confront four urgent challenges: circadian rhythm disruption, scientific illiteracy and misinformation, the decline of productive disagreement, and global water insecurity. The Enlightened Disagreement Program hosted a writing-based game created by psychology professor Steve Franconeri that pushed participants with divergent views on topics, such as the death penalty or the taxation of sugary snacks, to work together toward mutual understanding. And students in the Northwestern University Clinical Apprentice Program can explore their interest in medicine by shadowing a Northwestern Medicine physician, a unique opportunity that is offered through our colleagues in Health Professions Advising.
• Making summer for Northwestern students more enriching, fun and easier to navigate: Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Education Constance Wright worked with colleagues from across the Office of the Provost and partners across the University to help Northwestern students imagine different possibilities for a wonderful summer. Now, students have a centralized resource to help them plan for summer courses, internships, jobs, housing and more, with the newly created Undergraduate Summer website.

I could list so many more opportunities the Office of the Provost facilitates for our students. Our work across units puts us at the center of a big, bold, multifaceted effort to help our talented young people learn, grow and plan for their futures. That is an incredibly exciting and rewarding place to be, and I look forward to what lies ahead.

Sincerely,

Karen Smilowitz
Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education
James N. and Margie M. Krebs Professor in Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences and Operations Department, Kellogg

All about the staff

Meet Meghan Ozaroski

Meghan Ozaroski is the Director of Global Collaboration at the Roberta Buffett Institute for Global Affairs. In this role, she leads Buffett’s visiting scholars programming and supports strategic international partnerships with global universities. Meghan joined the Roberta Buffett Institute in 2008 while she was pursuing her Master of Science in Higher Education Administration and Policy degree through SESP. 

Can you briefly describe your day-to-day job?
My workdays often start at 7 a.m. for Zoom calls with fellow members of the U7+ Alliance of World Universities. The early-morning slot is best for calls with our partners in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. After that, I join my colleagues on the Buffett Global Collaboration Team. Any given day, we may be welcoming a new visiting scholar, getting ready to host an event or compiling faculty applications for grant funding. Along with the rest of the Buffett staff, we collaborate across Northwestern and around the world to advance international scholarship and global engagement. 

What are some new initiatives at Buffett?

We are launching a new Distinguished Practitioners in Residence program this spring. Our first two guests will be Vijayendra Rao, Lead Economist at the World Bank, and Thomas O. Melia, an accomplished foreign policy practitioner, who will speak at Buffett Conversations on May 11. The goal is to put distinguished practitioners into direct contact with Northwestern students to enhance their learning and inspire new thinking about their careers. It will also provide ample face time with faculty members to share perspectives about research and build connections with policymakers and multilateral bodies. The residencies will be from one to two weeks up to a quarter. 

What is something interesting about you that people may not know?

When the weather is nice, I love riding my bike to work for my 10-mile round-trip commute. If you’re interested in commuting by bike, check out the Bike to Campus website, which has great tips for city biking and instructions for signing up for the Northwestern Bike Commuter Listserv. If you subscribe, keep an eye out for the Northwestern Bike Commuter Team Challenge, May 11–June 7.

Staff who joined or started new roles in Office of the Provost units in February and March

Energy Innovation Lab

• Emily Hildreth, Associate Director

Enrollment

• Erin Mason, Senior Assistant Director, Financial Aid, Evanston
• Tricia Paterakos, Businesss Manager

Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps

• August Kasten, Assistant Professor Naval Science 

Office of International Student and Scholar Services

• Gwyneth Brits, International Scholar Advisor

University Registrar

• Richard Gessert, Registration and Scheduling Assistant
• Maxine Sexton, Academic Records Assistant 

Office of the Provost Staff Awards deadline extended to May 1

Office of the Provost staff are invited to submit nominations for the 2026 Office of the Provost Staff Awards by May 1. By making a nomination for the Innovation Award and/or the Community Award, you help the Office of the Provost shine a light on the impactful work of our exceptional team members. As we did last year, we will honor the 2026 awardees during the spring Office of the Provost All-Staff Meeting, this year scheduled for June 10. The winners and their respective nominators will be invited to speak.

Congratulations are in order

ASLA Peer Leader and Northwestern senior Inka Rzezinowska has won Northwestern's 2025–26 Student Employee of the Year Award in the Leadership category. Inka was recognized for her dedication to supporting and uplifting fellow students as they work toward academic success in ASLA's Undergraduate Program for Advancing Learning.

News, notes and need to know

Performance Excellence (PEx) Timeline

This time of year marks an important phase in Northwestern’s Performance Excellence (PEx) program. The deadline for staff to submit a self-review in myHR Learn is May 20, with supervisors submitting their reviews a few weeks later. Performance meetings take place in late summer (see full schedule below). Please take the time to reflect on your work, revisit your goals and take stock of your accomplishments.

• By Jan 28: Staff and supervisors will have completed mid-year check-ins
• By May 20: Staff submit written self-reviews in myHR Learn
• By June 17: Supervisors submit written reviews and assign ratings in myHR Learn
• Supervisors pause for central review; Administration and Finance Team will confirm when to proceed
• By July 29: Supervisors hold performance meetings, finalize and release reviews/ratings

Visit the Business Hub for resources and guides.

The Office of the Registrar's new home

The Office of the Registrar has moved to the first floor of 619 Clark Street. The Registrar is now open exclusively by appointment (the link to schedule an appointment is at the top of the homepage of the Registrar's website). It is usually possible to get a same-day appointment.

Opportunities to strengthen community with OCE

The Office of Community Enrichment (OCE) offers a range of opportunities to connect with colleagues across Northwestern.

• Attend the Seed Starting Gathering on Earth Day, Wednesday, April 22, from noon-2 p.m. 
• Check out the latest episode of the NU Ideas Podcast, in which Northwestern librarian Steve Adams discusses how curiosity can help us build a more robust and nuanced personal archive.
• Co-work with OCE from 1-4 p.m. May 4 (1800 Sherman, fifth floor) for an afternoon of shared productivity in a welcoming space. Co-working takes place the first Wednesday of each month and no sign-up is required.

In case you missed it

• Northwestern has updated its digital accessibility policy, providing a welcoming experience for anyone interacting with the University in the digital space. The Office of Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance also has created a short survey to gauge awareness of digital accessibility and comfort levels in the Northwestern community as well as inform the development of additional initiatives.

• Vice President for Research Eric Perreault will step down from the role at the end of April and return to his full-time role as a faculty member. Associate Provost for Faculty Sumit Dhar will serve as interim Vice President for Research.

• The Northwestern Network for Collaborative Intelligence announced strategic leaders who will focus on three pillars of AI and data science: Research, Education and Infrastructure.

• Award-winning actor Sarah Jessica Parker will address the Class of 2026. She also will receive an honorary degree, along with Michael Graetzel, Heather Headley and David Skorton, at the June 14 ceremony.
• Mark Jackson, Combe Family Vice President for Athletics and Recreation, shared his vision for Northwestern Athletics in a community message. The Intercollegiate Athletics Committee launched in January 2026 with the charge of advising Northwestern's president on issues related to the welfare and academic performance of student-athletes.
• View more news from around the University.

Mark your calendar

Featured events 

Key dates

• June 10: Spring All-Staff Meeting, followed by Coffee With Colleagues
• May 25: Memorial Day (University closed)

More resources

• University Events
• Academic Calendars
• Past Newsletters

Help us build future newsletters! If your unit is working on a project that is relevant to the entire Office of the Provost, or if you have awards, honors or accomplishments to share, send an email to officeoftheprovost@northwestern.edu.