Crista Marchesseault, Associate Director
As Associate Director at the Gesell Institute, Crista focuses on project management and program development, including inter-agency and community-based collaborations and partnerships, as well as public awareness initiatives. She directs the Parent-Teacher Connection Program, a collaboration between Gesell Institute and New Haven Public Schools, and is a member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), New Haven AEYC, and Connecticut AEYC; the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD); and The Connecticut Association of Nonprofits.
Crista began her affiliation with the Gesell Institute as a consultant in March of 2007, as she was concluding a five-year post as Research Associate at the Yale University Child Study Center. While at Yale, she coordinated the National Prekindergarten Study (NPS), under the direction of Dr. Walter Gilliam, and co-authored two NPS technical papers, reporting the first national data on the actual classroom-level status and needs of preschool teachers, assistant teachers, and children across the nation. Upon the completion of the NPS data collection and initial analyses, Crista directed two evaluation studies at Yale, on the Early Childhood Consultation Partnership (ECCP) and the Motheread/Fatheread Program. She continues her affiliation with the Child Study Center as a Fellow at The Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy.
Crista holds a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Communications from Northeastern University; a Master of Arts in Teaching from Sacred Heart University; and a Master of Arts in Child Development from Tufts University, where she was able to sharpen her expertise in developmental literacy and work on an innovative program connecting parents and teachers in Somerville, Massachusetts. In addition to her work in teaching, remedial reading, and academic research, Crista’s broad professional background includes work in public relations, web development, professional editing, grant facilitation, and job training.