President 
Barnard College

Sian Beilock is President of Barnard College and one of the world’s leading experts on the brain science behind “choking under pressure” and the many brain and body factors influencing all types of performance: from test-taking to public speaking to your golf swing.

Beilock received a B.S. in Cognitive Science from the University of California, San Diego and PhDs in both Kinesiology (sport science) and Psychology from Michigan State University. Most recently, Beilock was the Stella M. Rowley Professor of Psychology and the Executive Vice Provost of the University of Chicago. Her research has been funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the National Science Foundation (including a CAREER award), and several private foundations. She works with educators, business leaders, athletic coaches and those involved in public policy, including serving on a National Research Council committee on decision-making and stress.

Sian Beilock’s research is routinely covered in the media (e.g., CNN, New York Times, NPR, Wall Street Journal) and she was highlighted as one of four “Rising Stars” across all academic disciplines by the Chronicle of Higher Education in 2005, chosen as one of twenty-five “Women to Watch” by Crain’s Chicago Business Magazine in 2007, and received an award for Transformative Early Career Contributions from the Association for Psychological Science in 2011. In 2017, Beilock won the Troland Research Award from the National Academy of Sciences.