Dr. Angela Lee Duckworth is a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, where she investigates non-IQ competencies like self-control and grit, which significantly predict academic and professional success. Her research has spanned various populations, including West Point cadets, National Spelling Bee finalists, novice teachers, salespeople, and students. Dr. Duckworth earned her B.A. in Neurobiology from Harvard in 1992 and, as a Marshall Scholar, obtained a Master's in Neuroscience from Oxford. She completed her Ph.D. in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Before her research career, she founded a nonprofit summer school for low-income children, which received the Better Government Award in Massachusetts and was featured as a Harvard Kennedy School case study. Additionally, she has experience as a McKinsey management consultant and spent five years teaching math in public schools across San Francisco, Philadelphia, and New York City. In recognition of her impactful work, she was selected as a MacArthur Fellow in 2013.

Dr. Claire Robertson-Kraft holds a Ph.D. in education policy and currently serves as a post-doctoral fellow and the Associate Director of Operation Public Education at The University of Pennsylvania. She co-edited A Grand Bargain for Education Reform: New Rewards and Supports for New Accountability (Harvard Education Press, 2009), which offers a comprehensive framework for evaluating, compensating, and developing teachers. Her research delves into how education policies affect teachers' motivation, effectiveness, and retention. After graduating from Penn in 2004, Claire worked with Teach For America in Houston, where she began as a third-grade teacher and later became a program director supporting elementary and special education teachers, igniting her passion for urban education. Additionally, Claire is actively engaged in the Philadelphia civic community, serving as the Co-Founder and current President of PhillyCORE Leaders and holding positions on the boards of YouthBuild Philadelphia, Leadership Philadelphia, and Russell Byers Charter School.