Christian Friend

Dr. Christian A. Friend (Christian) is the Senior Director of Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Tides. Before this role, Christian served as President of Thrive Chicago. Thrive Chicago works to advance racial equity for youth of color in Chicago. Christian holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master’s in Social Sciences from the University of Chicago. He has a Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a Certificate in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
from Cornell University.
 
Christian began his career as a public school teacher. He then went on to develop youth programs in low-income housing communities. Upon completing his doctoral program, Christian was a research director at the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute and a senior relationship manager at the United Way of the Central Carolinas. He then held several positions within the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School (CMS) district.
 
While at CMS, Christian managed the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation-funded Achievement Zone Project and the district’s Center for Research and Evaluation. He led the development and implementation of the strategic plan for Project LIFT and went on to serve as the Executive Director of the district’s Office of Accountability. Christian also served as the Senior Program Officer for Renaissance West Community Initiative, the Director of Research, Evaluation and Assessment for Indianapolis Public Schools, and the Managing Director of a consulting firm serving non-profit organizations. Christian has also previously served as the Chief Impact Officer at Heartland Alliance. Christian has published multiple articles in peer-reviewed academic journals and has presented at academic and professional conferences. He has expertise in organizational strategy, organizational development, research and evaluation, public education, leadership development, social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion. 
 
Christian spends much of his free time serving his family and community. He is a published poet and an alumnus of the Community Building Initiative’s Leadership Development Initiative and the Wildacres Leadership Initiative’s William C. Friday Fellowship for Human Relations. He serves on the Boards of Directors for Agape Love Christian Ministries and the Retreat at Selah Farms. Christian is an avid science fiction movie, television, and comic book fan. He is a massive fan of basketball and American football.