School Notes: Faculty of Arts & Sciences
May/June 2026

Economists recognized for groundbreaking work

FAS economists received grants, fellowships, and prizes this spring for their outstanding research. Dirk Bergemann, the Douglass and Marion Campbell Professor of Economics, was awarded a grant from the UK’s AI Security Institute to build a framework for ensuring the safety of AI systems. John Eric Humphries, an assistant professor of economics who studies how public policy shapes economic opportunity for children, families, and young adults, received a prestigious Sloan Research Fellowship for early-career scholars. At the Economic Growth Center, director Rohini Pande, the Henry J. Heinz II Professor of Economics, and Nicholas Ryan, associate professor of economics, won an award from the UC-Berkeley Haas Center for Responsible Business for their research on emissions markets. 

Renowned writers teach Yale College writing courses

What’s it like to take a writing class with a famous cartoonist? An award-winning playwright? A Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist? Yale College students have had the opportunity to learn writing with cartoonist Alison Bechdel, playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, and investigative journalist Sarah Stillman ’06BA/MA, all three of whom are professors in the practice in the FAS and accomplished professional writers. Visit the FAS website for a glimpse into their intimate, project-driven classes. 

Junior psychology faculty making waves

Assistant professors in psychology are conducting research that helps us understand the brain and how it interacts with the body and the outside world. Shirley Wang received a multiyear grant to fund research into how digital and social media affect mental health in adolescents and young adults. Ilker Yildirim received a Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation for his research that develops new computational models to shed light on the brain’s “object cognition” abilities. And Samuel McDougle was recently honored with the 2026 Cognitive Neuroscience Society Young Investigator Award in recognition of his research exploring how the cerebellum, a structure traditionally associated with motor control, also supports cognitive functions such as language, working memory, and social cognition.