As a historical archaeologist, Dr. Graff studies the relationship between temporality and modernity, consumerism and material culture, and contemporary heritage and urbanism. She currently teaches as an associate professor of anthropology at Lake Forest College in Illinois.
Wendy Laurel Freedman of the University of Chicago, Dedre Gentner of Northwestern University, and Karen Seto of Yale University are among the 2026 laureates of the Benjamin Franklin Medal. They are recognized for their groundbreaking contributions to physics, computer and cognitive science, and earth and environmental science, respectively.
Katherine Tate, professor of political science at Brown University, is a leading scholar on African American politics, race and gender in political science, American public opinion, government, and urban politics.
The women taking on new endowed faculty roles are Avery Willis Hoffman at the University of Chicago's Court Theatre, Rosalind Horowitz at the University of Texas at San Antonio, Jennifer Mueller at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Indiana, and Jungmeen Kim-Spoon at Virginia Tech.
Dr. Raitt's career in higher education spanned over four decades. She was the first woman to earn tenure at the Duke University Divinity School and founded the University of Missouri's department of religious studies.
The six women scholars appointed to named professorships at the University of Chicago are Katherine Baicker, Diana Bolotin, Christina Ciaccio, Yueran Ma, Alison Siegler, and Jennifer Wolf.
Dr. Frisch was a faculty member at the University of Chicago's department of astronomy and astrophysics for nearly 50 years. She was a leading expert on the heliosphere, the region of space influenced by the solar wind and the sun's magnetic field.
Holly Humphrey was a longtime professor and academic administrator at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. Throughout her tenure, she focused on advancing inclusive learning, mentorship, and scholarship within medical education.
Dr. Ehrich has been a faculty member with Virginia Tech since 1980. Her scientific discoveries have influenced broader research on how neurotoxic organophosphates harm humans.
A team of researchers led by the University of Minnesota has identified several hundred components of human milk that are determined by women's genetic differences. Many of these genes were found to affect infant gut microbiomes.
Even among workers within the same occupations, women are significantly less likely to use ChatGPT to complete work tasks than their male colleagues. This gap exists despite women and men holding similar beliefs about the tool's time-saving potential.
Dr. Cantwell currently serves as president of Utah State University. Her background includes extensive leadership experience overseeing research initiatives in academia and U.S. national security.
