Erika Christakis
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Erika Christakis (''née'' Zuckerman) is an American educator and writer, specializing in
early childhood education Early childhood education (ECE), also known as nursery education, is a branch of education theory that relates to the teaching of children (formally and informally) from birth up to the age of eight. Traditionally, this is up to the equivale ...
. She is author of '' The Importance of Being Little''.


Education and early career

Christakis graduated from
Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...
with a degree in social anthropology in 1986. She was one of the first undergraduate interns at Harvard's Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations and studied in Kenya in 1985. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Christakis worked on public health projects in Bangladesh and Ghana and served as a case manager for indigent adults with mental illness and addiction in Boston. In 1990, Christakis obtained a Master of Public Health degree from
Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...
, with a concentration in international health. In 1993, she obtained a second master's degree from the
Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania :''There are multiple Annenberg Schools. For the communications school at USC, see USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. See also Annenberg (disambiguation).'' The Annenberg School for Communication is the communication school ...
, with a focus on the role of education campaigns to prevent HIV infection and to improve maternal and child health. Christakis obtained her third master's degree in 2008, in early childhood education, from
Lesley University Lesley University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. As of 2018-19 Lesley University enrolled 6,593 students (2,707 undergraduate and 3,886 graduate). History ...
and was then licensed in Massachusetts as an early childhood teacher and preschool director.


Career

Since the 1990s, Christakis has worked as a preschool teacher, college administrator and instructor, educational consultant, and writer and journalist. From 2009-2013, Christakis was appointed Co-Master, together with her husband, the scientist
Nicholas Christakis Nicholas A. Christakis (born May 7, 1962) is a Greek-American sociologist and physician known for his research on social networks and on the socioeconomic, biosocial, and evolutionary determinants of human welfare (including the behavior, healt ...
, of
Pforzheimer House Pforzheimer House, nicknamed PfoHo (''FOE-hoe'') and formerly named North House, is one of twelve undergraduate residential Houses at Harvard University. It was named in 1995 for Carol K. and Carl Howard Pforzheimer Jr, major University and Radc ...
at Harvard College. In 2013, Christakis moved to
Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
, where she was appointed Lecturer in Early Childhood Education at the Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy at the
Yale Child Study Center The Yale Child Study Center is a department at the Yale University School of Medicine. The center conducts research and provides clinical services and medical training related to children and families. Topics of investigation include autism and re ...
. At Yale, she has taught undergraduate courses in child policy, early childhood education, and child development. She was appointed Associate Master of
Silliman College Silliman College is a residential college at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, named for scientist and Yale professor Benjamin Silliman. It opened in September 1940 as the last of the original ten residential colleges, and contains buil ...
, one of Yale's 12 residential colleges, in the spring of 2015, a post she held until June 2016. Christakis has written on the developmental needs of children, young adults, and families, and on popular culture and other topics, for many venues, including ''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'', CNN.com, ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', ''
The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
'', the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'', and ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
''. She wrote a ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' Ideas column for two years. She has written in the defense of the rights of minors and criticized the increasing bureaucratization of American schooling. Her article in ''The Atlantic'' in early 2016, "The New Preschool Is Crushing Kids", was described in ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
'' as having an "explosive" effect on the education world. Her book, '' The Importance of Being Little: What Preschoolers Really Need From Grownups'' was published by
Viking Penguin Viking Press (formally Viking Penguin, also listed as Viking Books) is an American publishing company owned by Penguin Random House. It was founded in New York City on March 1, 1925, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim and then acquire ...
in February 2016, and it debuted on the ''New York Times'' Hardcover Nonfiction Bestseller List of February 28, 2016, at number 19. ''
Science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
'' described the book as "superbly written" and "supported by a rich scientific literature". In October 2019, she joined the National Advisory Board of Defending the Early Years. Christakis has spoken twice at the Aspen Institute Ideas Festival.


Support of free expression

During her time as a Co-Master of
Pforzheimer House Pforzheimer House, nicknamed PfoHo (''FOE-hoe'') and formerly named North House, is one of twelve undergraduate residential Houses at Harvard University. It was named in 1995 for Carol K. and Carl Howard Pforzheimer Jr, major University and Radc ...
at
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
in 2012, Christakis was involved in the defense of free expression. She came to the defense of minority students who were using satire to criticize the
final clubs Harvard College has several types of social clubs. These are split between gender-inclusive clubs recognized by the college, and unrecognized single-gender clubs which are subject to College sanctions. The Hasty Pudding Club holds claim as the old ...
at that institution, arguing that policing free expression on campus "denies students the opportunity to learn to think for themselves." In another column that same year, she came to the defense of a high school student wearing a T-shirt supporting gay rights. In October 2015, in her capacity as Associate Master of Silliman College, in
Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
, Christakis wrote an email to the undergraduates in the college regarding the role of free expression in universities. This email was in response to a directive from the Intercultural Affairs Committee at Yale that provided guidelines regarding Halloween costumes and "“encourage Yale students to take the time to consider their costumes and the impact it many have." In her response, Christakis argued that, from a developmental perspective, students might wish to consider whether administrators should provide guidance to college students regarding Halloween attire or whether students should be allowed to "dress themselves," asking, "I wonder if we should reflect more transparently, as a community, on the consequences of an institutional… exercise of implied control over college students."
Conor Friedersdorf Conor Renier Friedersdorf is an American journalist and a staff writer at ''The Atlantic'', known for his civil libertarian perspectives. Early life and career He attended Pomona College as an undergraduate, and attended the journalism school at ...
with ''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'' wrote that "her message was a model of relevant, thoughtful, civil engagement." The email played a role in protests at Yale about several issues, and it received national attention. At the end of the academic year, Christakis decided to no longer teach at Yale, and, on the anniversary of the events (in October 2016), she described the difficult circumstances she had faced, expressing concern that a "culture of protection may ultimately harm those it purports to protect."


Personal

Christakis is married to scientist and author
Nicholas Christakis Nicholas A. Christakis (born May 7, 1962) is a Greek-American sociologist and physician known for his research on social networks and on the socioeconomic, biosocial, and evolutionary determinants of human welfare (including the behavior, healt ...
and they have four children, one of whom they adopted later in life, while serving as foster parents.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christakis, Erika Yale University faculty Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania alumni Harvard College alumni Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health alumni Lesley University alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Living people