2025 Susan E. Mayer Award for Excellence in Field Research Winners
The Susan E. Mayer Award for Excellence in Field Research was designed to honor student research assistants at the BIP Lab who have demonstrated excellence in field research implementation. It is the first Harris student award that comes with a monetary prize and academic recognition on the students’ official transcripts. These four student research assistants demonstrated the highest standards in contributions to data collection; representing the BIP Lab and Harris in the community; informing research design; improving data quality; and professionalism and collegiality. Join us as we celebrate these trailblazers setting the highest standards on the front lines of field research. Learn more about the award here.
Alberto Saldarriaga
Harris Public Policy, Class of 2025
Alberto Saldarriaga is a second-year Master of Public Policy student at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, with a special interest in International Development, Education Policy, and Data Analytics. With a background in economics and over five years of experience in public policy management, he has worked across academic, government, and nonprofit organizations to design and evaluate policies focused on education, social protection, and inclusive development. His experience spans institutions such as Peru’s Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Education, the Brookings Institution, the World Bank, and the Behavioral Insights and Parenting Lab. He is passionate about applying data-driven and human-centered approaches to strengthen public systems and advance equity.
Cristian Bancayan
Harris Public Policy, Class of 2025
Cristian Bancayan is a Peruvian economist and Master of Public Policy graduate from the University of Chicago. He has over five years of experience in the Peruvian public sector, specializing in social innovation, monitoring, and impact evaluation. Cristian previously led Ayni Lab Social at the Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion, where he oversaw data-driven initiatives focused on early childhood development and social protection. He also worked with IDinsight in Zambia, contributing to the evaluation of a large-sum cash transfer program in Malawi. Currently, he serves as a Research Assistant at the Behavioral Insights and Parenting (BIP) Lab at the University of Chicago and leads the monitoring and evaluation system at Sinkumunchis, an NGO that promotes sports among children in rural communities in Peru.
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Yazeed Abayazid
University of Chicago, Class of 2027
Yazeed Abayazid is a rising third year in the College studying Neuroscience and Business Economics. He began his work at the BIP Lab through the Becker Friedman Institute for Economics during summer of 2024, primarily conducting fieldwork at a wide range of academic institutions throughout Chicago. Now, he continues that fieldwork as part of the lab’s ongoing projects, focusing on parent engagement and behavioral interventions in early childhood education.
