Northwestern Professor Emeritus Roger Schank maintained years of contact with Jeffrey Epstein via text messages and emails, files released by the Department of Justice from last week show.

Schank was first brought to Northwestern in 1989 to help found and lead the Institute for the Learning Sciences as the John Evans Professor of Computer Science, Education, and Psychology. Seen as one of the leading and outspoken theorists in artificial intelligence in his time, Schank was largely heralded as a flagship hire for the university’s research agenda.

Back then, his arrival was funded by a $30 million, ten-year grant, which is over $70 million in today’s currency. Schank recently passed away in 2023 at the age of 76.

While the DOJ has released troves of Epstein files in the last months, the latest batch from Friday began to trace out the pair’s relationship, one that continued long after Epstein was first arrested in 2008. 

Since last week, we’ve also begun to sift through the more than 1000 Epstein files associated with Schank on the DOJ’s website.

From what we’ve been able to gather so far, the pair communicated regularly. Their messages discussed everything from Schank’s work on AI to family and higher education, much like friends would. In one exchange, they even shared eye doctor recommendations. Other times, they arranged to grab a quick meal together.  

“How is home life?” Schank emailed Epstein in July 2009. “Come visit next week and see for yourself,” Epstein replied. 

Their relationship serves as a contiguous example of Epstein’s affinity for scientists, keeping them as close confidants and friends. Other prominent names that have shown up in the files include Stephen Hawking, Murray Gell-Mann, Frank Wilczek and George M. Church.

Prior to Northwestern, Schank was a professor at Stanford University and Yale University, and he also helped found multiple learning technologies companies. His work at Northwestern led to advancements in the interdisciplinary field of learning sciences and helped establish the nation’s first doctoral program in the field at Northwestern’s School of Education and Social Policy.

Be patient with us as we comb through these files over the next few days. We’ll present a much more detailed examination of Schank’s relationship with Epstein in our next issue.

It seems your hosts were right on the money last week — Northwestern football will not kick off its 2026-2027 season at the new Ryan Field. 

The first two home games of the season will be played at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium. Those games are against South Dakota State on Sept. 5 and Colorado on Sept. 19. 

Instead, the first game at the new Ryan Field will be against Penn State on Oct. 2, like we predicted. The remaining home games will also be played at Ryan Field. 

Many fans thought the stadium was supposed to be ready-for-play by the first home game of the season. But according to a Northwestern Athletics press release announcing the home venue schedule, construction is on track despite weather delays and the plan was always for the stadium to be completed in mid-September 2026. 

A fun fact about the Oct. 2 Ryan Field opener against Penn State: This game will be played 100 years to the day that the original stadium hosted its first football game in 1926. 

Northwestern football will face Penn State, Ball State, Rutgers, Iowa and Illinois at Ryan Field.

Northwestern announced the launch of the Simpson Querrey Brain Health Institute on Monday, which is fueled by a nearly $25 million donation from Trustee Kimberly K. Querrey. The new institute aims to reshape how scientists and clinicians understand and preserve brain health across the human lifespan.

Querrey is no stranger to major donations to Northwestern. Her name appears on many other centers and projects, such as the Louis A. Simpson and Kimberly K. Querrey Biomedical Research Center, the Kimberly K. Querrey and Louis A. Simpson Institute for Bioelectronics, the Querrey Simpson Institute for Regenerative Engineering at Northwestern University and the Simpson Querrey Institute for Epigenetics. 

Querrey works in the private capital and investment sector, currently serving as the president and CEO of Gulf Shore Private Capital, LLC. She was formerly president and co-founder of SQ Advisors, LLC. At NU, she’s previously held leadership roles within the board of trustees, including her past chairship of the Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Committee. 

The new institute will also support research and clinical care to address various brain conditions, from cognitive decline to neurovascular disease. The institute will focus on prevention and earlier detection of issues in the brain. 

Dr. Farzaneh Sorond, who is the vice dean for faculty affairs at Feinberg, will serve as the founding director of the institute. 

~ Thanks for reading. See you next time!