Dear Colleagues:
I am pleased to announce the reappointment of Christina (Tina) Christie as Wasserman Dean of the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies (Ed&IS), following the completion of a customary five-year administrative review. Her review committee commended her as a thoughtful, strategic leader who has guided Ed&IS through an exceptionally complex period while advancing equity, academic innovation and growth.
Since taking up the role in April 2021, Dean Christie has shown steady, resilient and visionary leadership through historic challenges. Faculty, staff and students consistently praise her empathy, proactive approach, and dedication to shared governance and inclusive decision-making.
Ed&IS has experienced significant academic expansion under Dean Christie’s leadership. She spearheaded the creation of the undergraduate major in education and social transformation, which now serves more than 500 students and equips them to examine educational issues through social, cultural and historical perspectives. At the graduate level, she helped launch the nation’s first M.Ed. in transformative coaching and leadership. Her support of efforts to amplify the public impact of Ed&IS’s work includes appointing two new associate deans who lead efforts to deepen engagement with local, state and global partners, as well as several initiatives designed to democratize information, knowledge, research and practice.
Dean Christie led a major faculty renewal effort, recruiting 19 new Senate faculty members, including scholars in emerging areas such as environmental justice and expanding areas such as community archival studies. These appointments strengthened the school’s academic profile and expanded its ladder Senate faculty to 60 members, of which 18 are members of the National Academy of Education and seven are members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. A defining hallmark of Dean Christie’s leadership has been her unwavering commitment to inclusive excellence. She embedded equity-focused practices into hiring, resource allocation, faculty support and student engagement, while sustaining critical investments despite significant budgetary pressures. Colleagues across Ed&IS have noted her efforts to elevate and support professional faculty, many of whom expressed feeling well recognized, valued and included.
She has also demonstrated exceptional fundraising and resource development. Under her leadership, the school secured $85.6 million in gifts, $86.7 million in grants and contracts, $16.5 million in state funding, and $60.2 million in sales and service revenue. These resources have supported program expansion and faculty research, and strengthened community engagement across Ed&IS. Equally important has been Dean Christie’s commitment to shared governance as evidenced by the school’s strategic planning process, which was co-led by the Faculty Executive Committee, ensuring faculty voices remained central to shaping Ed&IS’s future.
Chancellor Frenk and I look forward to Dean Christie’s continued leadership and to the continued growth and impact of Ed&IS. Please join us in congratulating Tina as she begins her second term as dean.
Sincerely,
Darnell Hunt
Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost