Christina A. Christie

Christina A. Christie

Moore Hall 2320
405 Hilgard Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1521

P: (310) 825-0432

CV

Christina A. Christie

Dean, School of Education and Information Studies, Professor

Christina (Tina) Christie is Dean of the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies, a role she has held since 2021 after serving as Interim Dean and Chair of the Department of Education. A leading voice in policy and program evaluation, her scholarship focuses on how systematic evidence can drive social change. A prolific author, Tina has published more than 100 works and received top honors from major national professional associations, including distinguished career awards from the American Evaluation Association and the American Educational Research Association. She has led more than 30 grants and contracts totaling approximately $35 million to study education, child maltreatment, and health behavior programs, and has served on the boards and advisory councils of organizations including the American Evaluation Association and currently serves on SCI-Arc Board of Trustees.

As Dean, she oversees a school of two academic departments and a robust set of research centers and institutes spanning climate and environmental education to AI Futures, with an annual budget of $85 million. She has guided strategic growth in the faculty, undergraduate and graduate programs, and the school’s research and public scholarship portfolio, with philanthropic and grant support exceeding $170 million. Christie earned her Ph.D. at UCLA and earlier advanced degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Departments

Programs

Areas of Expertise and Advising Interests

Research Centers

Status

Other Affiliations

Titles and Positions

  • Wasserman Dean, School of Education and Information Studies
  • Professor of Education, Division of Social Research Methodology

Awards, Honors and Fellowships

  • 2025 Board of Trustees, Southern California Institute of Architecture
  • 2019 American Evaluation Association, Research on Evaluation, Distinguished Scholar Award
  • 2018 American Educational Research Association, Research on Evaluation SIG, Distinguished Scholar Award
  • 2018 UCLA Staff Assembly Faculty/Staff Partnership Award
  • 2018 Canadian Journal of Evaluation, Outstanding Publication Award
  • 2011–2013, American Evaluation Association, Board Member at Large
  • 2004, American Evaluation Association, Marcia Guttentag Early Career Achievement Award
  • 1997–2000, Spencer Foundation Research and Training Doctoral Fellowship

Select Publications

  • Rohanna, K., Zimmerman, J., & Christie, C. A. (2026). A case in practice: Facilitating a systems thinking and complexity science approach. American Journal of Evaluation. https://doi.org/10.1177/10982140261418648
  • Srinivasan, J., Cobian, K. P., Ramos, H. V., Christie, C. A., Crespi, C. M., & Seeman, T. (2025). Examining undergraduates’ intentions to pursue a science career: A longitudinal study of a national biomedical training initiative. Education Sciences, 15(7), 825. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15070825
  • Srinivasan, J., Cobian, K. P., Maccalla, N. M., & Christie, C. A. (2024). Evaluating a national biomedical training program using QuantCrit: revealing disparities in research self-efficacy for women of color undergraduates. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 23(4), Article 54. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.24-02-0047
  • Christie, C. A. (2024). A tree: Planted and growing. Journal of MultiDisciplinary Evaluation, 20(48), 8–16. https://doi.org/10.56645/jmde.v20i48.1061
  • Lemire, S., Montrosse-Moorhead, B., & Christie, C. (2024). What is this thing called evaluation theory? Journal of MultiDisciplinary Evaluation, 20(48), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.56645/jmde.v20i48.1037
  • Ramos, H. V., Cobian, K. P., Srinivasan, J., Christie, C. A., Crespi, C. M., & Seeman T. (2024). Investigating the relationship between participation in the Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) initiative and intent to pursue a science career: A cross-sectional analysis. Evaluation and Program Planning, 102, Article 102380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2023.102380
  • Rohanna, K., & Christie, C. A. (2023). A problem-bound evaluation approach. Evaluation and Program Planning, 96, Article 102187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2022.102187
  • Kinarsky, A., & Christie, C. A. (2023). The intent and influence of evaluation policies and strategies in the philanthropic sector. Evaluation and Program Planning, 100, Article 102343. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2023.102343
  • Kinarsky, A., & Christie, C. A. (2021). An analysis of evaluation policies in the philanthropic sector. American Journal of Evaluation, 43(2), 175–192. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098214021989435
  • Alkin, M., Christie, C. A., & Stephen, N. A. (2021). Choosing an evaluation theory. Journal of MultiDisciplinary Evaluation, 17(41), 51–60. https://doi.org/10.56645/jmde.v17i41.709
  • Montrosse-Moorhead, B., & Christie, C. A. (Eds.). (2026). Evaluation and democracy: Navigating the complexities of today toward a future for evaluation. New Directions for Evaluation, 189.
  • Christie, C. A. (2026). The role of evaluation in strengthening democracy. New Directions for Evaluation, 189, 9–13. https://doi.org/10.1002/ev.70024
  • Montrosse-Moorhead, B., & Christie, C. A. (2026) How far dare an evaluator go toward defending democracy? New Directions for Evaluation, 189, 65–72. https://doi.org/10.1002/ev.70028
  • Guerrero, L. R., & Christie, C. A. (2022). Evaluating a national biomedical diversity initiative. New Directions for Evaluation, 174, 7–9. https:/doi.org/10.1002/ev.20501
  • Christie, C. A., & Wright, C. R. (2022). Theoretical and conceptual frameworks across local evaluation efforts in a nationwide consortium. New Directions for Evaluation, 174, 69–78. https://doi.org/10.1002/ev.20505
  • Norris, K., Mccreath, H., Hueffer, K., Aley, S.B., Chavira, G., Christie, C., Crespi, C., Crespo, C., D’Amour, G., Eagan, K., Echegoyen, L.E., Feig, A., Foroozesh, M., Guerrero, L., Johanson, K.E., Kamangar, F., Kingsford, L., Lacourse, W., Maccalla, N.M., Márquez-Magaña, L., Mathur, A., Maton, K., Mehravaran, S., Morales, D., Nakazono, T., Ofili, E., Okuyemi, K., Ott, L., Parangan-Smith, A., Pfund, C., Purnell, D.L., Reynolds, A., Rous, P.J., Saetermoe, C., Snyder, K., Vishwanatha, J., Wagler, A., Wallace, S., & Seeman, T. (2020). Baseline characteristics of the 2015–2019 first year student cohorts of the NIH Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) program. Ethnicity & Disease, 30(4), 681–692. https://doi.org/0.18865/ed.30.4.681
  • Christie, C. A., & Alkin, M. C. (2019). Theorists’ models in action: A second look. New Directions for Evaluation, 163, 11–18. https://doi.org/10.1002/ev.20377
  • Christie, C. A., & Lemire, S. (2019). Why evaluation theory should be used to inform evaluation policy. American Journal of Evaluation, 40(4), 490–508. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098214018824045
  • Lemire, S., & Christie, C. A. (2019). Meta-modeling Housing First: A theory-based synthesis approach. Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation, 33(3) 395-413. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjpe.52945 – 2018 outstanding publication award
  • Lemire, S., & Christie, C. (2018). Building the house of evaluation: Reconsidering the blueprints and bricks for knowledge. Evaluation, 24(2) 185–201. https://doi.org/10.1177/1356389018763
  • Nielson, S., Lemire, S., & Christie, C. (2018). The evaluation marketplace: Exploring the evaluation industry. New Directions for Evaluation, 160, 13–28. https://doi.org/10.1002/ev.20344
  • Christie, C. A., Inkelas, M., & Lemire, S. (Eds.) (2017). Improvement science in evaluation: Methods and uses. New Directions for Evaluation, 153. https://doi.org/10.1002/ev.20218

Select Book Chapters

  • Christie, C. A., Fleury, L., & Villela, A. L. (2025). No child left inside: Nature-based education as holistic approach to climate resilience and sustainable development. In M. Suarez-Orozco & V. Ramanathan (Eds.), From climate crisis to climate resilience (pp. 347–374). Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
  • Christie, C. A., Ho, J., & Alkin, M. C. (2023). Evaluation roots: Theory to practice. In M.C. Alkin & C.A. Christie (Eds.), Evaluation roots: Theory influencing practice (pp. 3–5). Guilford.
  • Christie, C. A., & Alkin, M. C. (2023). An evaluation theory tree: A framework for guiding a range of evaluation practice. In M. C. Alkin & C. A. Christie (Eds.), Evaluation roots: Theory influencing practice (pp. 12–51). Guilford.
  • Fujita-Conrads, E., Christie, C. A., & Fasthorse, E. (2023). Evaluation policy as bridge between evaluation theory and practice: The Office of Indian Health Services. In M. C. Alkin & C. A. Christie (Eds.), Evaluation roots: Theory influencing practice (pp. 292–299). Guilford.
  • Alkin, M. C., Christie, C. A., & Stephen, N. (2023). Theory influencing practice. In M. C. Alkin & C. A. Christie (Ed .), Evaluation roots: Theory influencing practice (pp. 273–291). Guilford.
  • Lemire, S., Christie, C. A., & Nielsen, S. B. (2020). Mending the theory gap in evaluation: Moving towards theory knitting. In M. Palenberg & A. Paulson (Eds.), Evaluation and the pursuit of impact. Taylor & Francis.
  • Nielsen, S., Lemire, S., & Christie, C. A. (2018). The commercial side of evaluation. In J-E Furubo & N. Stame (Eds.), The evaluation enterprise. Taylor & Francis.
  • Blagg, R. D., Franke, T. M., & Christie, C. A. (2017). When the process is the question: Resource family recruitment in Los Angeles, CA. In J. F. Springer, P. Haas, A. & Porowski (Eds.), Applied policy research: Concepts and cases (2nd ed.). Taylor & Francis.
  • Christie, C. A. (2015). Setting the stage for understanding evaluation use and decision-making. In C. Christie & A. Vo. (Eds.). Issues in evaluation use & decision-making in society. Information Age Publishing.
  • Christie, C. A. & Fleischer, D. (2014). Social inquiry paradigms as a frame for the debate on credible evidence. In S. Donaldson, C. Christie, & M. Mark (Eds.), Credible and actionable evidence in evaluation: The foundation for rigorous and ionfluential evaluations. Sage.
  • Christie, C. A. (2013). An evaluation lexicon. In S. Donaldson (Ed.), The future of evaluation in society. Information Age Publishing.

Edited Books

  • Alkin, M. C. & Christie, C. A. (Eds.). (2023). Evaluation roots: Theory influencing practice (3rd ed.). Guilford.
  • Christie, C. A., & Vo, A. (Eds.). (2015). Evaluation use and decision making in society. Information Age Publishing.
  • Donaldson, S. I., Christie, C. A., & Mark, M. (Eds.). (2014). Credible and actionable evidence in evaluation: The foundation for rigorous and influential evaluations. Sage.
  • Fitzpatrick, J., Christie, C. A., & Mark, M. (Eds.). (2008). Evaluation in action: Interviews with expert evaluators. Sage.
  • Donaldson, S. I., Christie, C. A. & Mark, M. (Eds.). (2008). What counts as credible evidence in evaluation and evidence-based practice? Sage.