Christina Theokas

Both an educator and researcher, Christina is committed to integrating research, practice and policy to help improve schools and student outcomes. She is the director of research at the Education Trust, where she recently co-authored a book, with Karin Chenoweth, Getting it Done: Leading Academic Success in Unexpected Schools (Harvard Education Press, 2011). Prior to joining the Ed Trust, she worked in the research and evaluation office of the Alexandria City Public Schools in Virginia. She evaluated program efficacy and trained principals and teachers on how to understand and use available data to make instructional decisions and guide school reform efforts.

Previously, Christina worked for 10 years in schools in various capacities, including as a special education teacher, school psychologist, and supervisor of curriculum, assessment, and training. She also led the middle school at a special education school in Massachusetts. Her work focused on developing curriculum and programs to meet the social, emotional, and learning needs of diverse students. Currently, she is the chair of the school performance committee at a charter school in Washington, D.C., and sits on the board of The Arlington Partnership for Children, Youth and Families. Christina holds a doctorate in Child Development from Tufts University.