After more than two decades in academia, Christi realised that the work she found most meaningful was not publishing papers or chairing meetings. It was helping people navigate difficult decisions and transitions, make sense of who they were becoming, and decide what they wanted to do next.
Christi earned her PhD in Developmental Psychology from the University of California, Davis after earlier graduate study in Religion at the University of Georgia and Hebrew and Jewish Studies at the Oxford Centre for Hebrew & Jewish Studies. She spent the next fifteen years at Jacksonville University, where she became known as a thoughtful teacher, collaborative leader, and trusted mentor. Her research examined children's understanding of optimism and emotion, while her professional life also included teaching, leading academic departments, and helping shape university policy and governance.
At Jacksonville University Christi held numerous leadership positions, including Chair of Psychology and Director of the School of Social Sciences and Education. Those roles gave her a front-row seat to the challenges facing higher education and, more importantly, to the struggles and aspirations of the people working within it.
Over time she found herself increasingly drawn to the human side of academic life, including supporting faculty through difficult decisions, helping colleagues navigate leadership roles, and encouraging students who doubted their own potential. The conversations she valued most were often the ones that happened after the meeting or after class, when someone was wrestling with uncertainty and trying to decide what came next.
When her university underwent a major reorganisation in 2025, Christi volunteered for early retirement so that another colleague could keep their position. By then, she had already discovered the work that mattered most to her.
Her transition into coaching felt less like a career change and more like a natural extension of what she had been doing all along. Today she coaches academics, administrators, and emerging leaders who are navigating growth, transition, and reinvention. Drawing on developmental psychology, positive psychology, and ICF coaching principles, she helps people think more clearly, lead more intentionally, and approach change with greater confidence and self-compassion.
As a mentor, Christi sees herself as a sounding board, an encourager, and the person willing to ask the difficult questions that help people move forward.