Abigayle Fredrickson

Abigayle (Abi) Fredrickson serves as Director of Academic Affairs and Instructional Services for the University of Chicago’s MS in Applied Data Science program. In this role, she oversees academic personnel processes, instructional operations, and the administrative functions that support students, faculty, and staff across the program.

Abi brings more than two decades of experience in graduate professional education. She comes to UChicago from Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering, where as a Director in the Office of Professional Education she led a team of 19 staff across 13 specialized engineering master’s programs – partnering with school and program leadership to strengthen operations, cultivate cohesive team culture, and create systems that held steady through rapid change and competing demands. Earlier in her Northwestern tenure, she managed comprehensive day-to-day operations for the Master of Science in Information Technology program, working closely with faculty, top industry and alumni advisors, and university stakeholders to keep the program continuously evolving alongside the demands of the field.

Throughout her career, Abi has been drawn to creating – and transforming – teams, processes, and cultures that build trust and endure. She leads with a particular attentiveness to the in-between moments – transitions, handoffs, and periods of change – where the right support makes all the difference. She leads with a focus on collaboration, accountability, and the belief that strong operational foundations are what allow students and faculty to do their best work.

She holds an MS in Environmental Education from Lesley University (Cambridge, MA), a Master in the Art of Teaching from National Louis University (Chicago, IL), and a BA in Sociology/Anthropology from Earlham College (Richmond, IN). She also completed the Kellogg School of Management’s Leading Change executive program and is a graduate of Leadership Evanston’s Signature Leadership Program.