Uzzi Among Nine Northwestern Faculty Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The Academy recognizes leaders across disciplines, professions, and perspectives
Northwestern Engineering’s Brian Uzzi is one of nine members of the Northwestern University faculty to be elected members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies.
Along with Uzzi, the new members elected were Christine Brennan, Cynthia E. Coburn, Jennifer Lackey, Gregory E. Miller, Akinwumi Ogundiran, Frederic A. Rasio, Sergio T. Rebelo, and Daniel B. Rodriguez. They are among the nearly 250 members elected in 2025, earning recognition for their excellence and commitment to uphold the Academy’s mission of engaging with professions across different perspectives.
“These new members’ accomplishments speak volumes about the human capacity for discovery, creativity, leadership and persistence. They are a stellar testament to the power of knowledge to broaden our horizons and deepen our understanding,” said Laurie L. Patton, president of the Academy. “We invite every new member to celebrate their achievement and join the Academy in our work to promote the common good.”
Founded in 1780 by John Adams, John Hancock, and others, the Academy was founded on ideals that celebrate the life of the mind, the importance of knowledge, and the belief that the arts and sciences are “necessary to the interest, honor, dignity, and happiness of a free, independent and virtuous people.”
Uzzi is the Richard Thomas Professor of Leadership at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. He also co-directs the Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO), the Ryan Institute on Complexity, and holds professorships in sociology at the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and in industrial engineering and management sciences at the McCormick School of Engineering.
Uzzi’s research uses social network science and computational methods to explain outstanding human achievement. As a globally recognized scientist, teacher and consultant on leadership, social networks and AI, he has consulted for organizations and governments around the globe, including US intelligence agencies, Thomson Reuters, BAE, Google, Microsoft, Intel, and Facebook.