Barbara Schneider is a Professor of Sociology and Human Development at the University of Chicago. Dr. Schneider is a co-director of the Alfred P. Sloan Center on Parents, Children and Work and the Director of the Data Research and Development Center, a new a 6 million dollar initiative from IERI. Her current interests include how social contexts, primarily schools and families, influence individuals' interests and actions. Dr. Schneider received her Ph.D. from Northwestern University.