Julie Sidarous

Assistant Professor of Special Education

Dr. Julie Sidarous is an award-winning educator, researcher, and the former Program Director of the Hawkins Grant. She holds a doctorate in Curriculum, Advocacy, and Policy from National Louis University (NLU) and has extensive experience in teacher preparation, with areas of specialization including culturally responsive teaching, building pre-service teacher self-efficacy, special education, RtI/MTSS, and family and community engagement. A former Chicago Public Schools special education teacher, case manager, and instructional coach, Dr. Sidarous brings a deep understanding of how to support diverse student populations in high-need schools.

For the past nine years, Dr. Sidarous has taught in NLU’s CPS residency programs, where she helped design and implement a culturally responsive curriculum that fosters meaningful reflection, intentional student relationships, and active collaboration with students’ families and communities. In 2023, she joined the Hawkins Grant team, first as the Internal Program Evaluator, and later as Program Director. In this role, she has enjoyed supporting Hawkins Candidates, working closely with her team, collaborating with national and local stakeholders, conducting in-depth research, and disseminating grant-related results and findings.

Dr. Sidarous prioritizes building strong relationships with the graduate candidates she teaches at NLU. Her commitment to teaching excellence was recognized in 2019 when she received the NLU Excellence in Teaching Award. She was also honored with El Premio Águila (The Eagle Award) in both 2024 and 2025 for her support of Latina/o/x students.

Dr. Sidarous is thrilled to be joining the Special Education faculty in the National College of Education as an Assistant Professor. She looks forward to collaborating with faculty colleagues, engaging with students, and contributing to thought leadership initiatives.