September 27, 2024
Christ brings wealth of literacy experience as first Spangler Distinguished Professor
For Dr. Tanya Christ, being able to serve as the first East Carolina University College of Education Spangler Distinguished Professor of Early Child Literacy is the culmination of years of work and passion in literacy.
“What really excited me about this position was the opportunity to engage more closely with communities and schools, which really aligns perfectly with my passion and the whole reason that I got into the field,” she said.
The Spangler Distinguished Professor Early Child Literacy is one of four positions created across North Carolina through a generous $8 million gift from the C.D. Spangler Foundation to East Carolina University, Appalachian State University, N.C. A&T State University and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. These positions are designed to take leadership roles and advocate for early literacy best practices, strategies and science of reading initiatives while also creating professional development and partnerships with school and community organizations.
Christ’s pathway to ECU was not a straight line. She began her academic career as a first-generation student studying psychology, which is where she fell in love with research.
After spending time serving as a rape and domestic violence crisis counselor, she decided to attend law school at UNC-Chapel Hill. However, during her first year, she found her passion for education and made the decision to get a second bachelor’s degree in elementary education.
“I taught in New York City Public Schools in Brooklyn, which was fabulous and I loved my kids,” she said. “In New York City, you get a free subway pass for your whole class if you’re in a Title I school, which we were, so I could take them on the trains anywhere in the city that I wanted to. I would do field trips aligned with the curriculum. We would travel at least every two weeks, and it would always be aligned with our social studies or science content.”
Having those experiences — such as writing poetry in the Zen Garden — and connecting with the students’ families showed Christ that her students could perform at grade level and could close the gap between their current academic performance and grade level expectations.
“I really wanted to dive more deeply into understanding how and why this happened,” she said. “I was in my early 20s. I didn’t have a lot of big picture sociopolitical views or knowledge at that point in my life, so I went back to graduate school. I got a master’s degree as a reading specialist and a PhD in literacy, which really helped me understand the complexity of how this happens.”
For her first few months, Christ is immersing herself in the culture at ECU and getting to know the people she’ll work closely alongside in the college and university.
“One of the things I’m really focused on doing right now is trying to meet people and better understand the context here at ECU, but also in eastern North Carolina, in terms of what’s happening in the schools and communities and what kinds of early literacy strength and needs there are,” she said. “All of that will really drive the next steps in this position for me. I want to follow and address the needs and desires for collaboration, rather than try to create something and then find someone to join me.”
She also plans to work with the other three Spangler Distinguished Professors and the two Goodnight Distinguished Professors across the state to collaborate in an effort to uplift literacy statewide. This type of collaboration and service is not new to Christ as she has served on several national and international boards including the editorial review board of the Journal of Research in Childhood Education and three positions with the International Literacy Association: Dina Feitelson Research Award and Albert J. Harris Award Committee, Elva Knight Grant Proposal Review Committee and Administrator Task Force.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Tanya Christ to our faculty as the first Spangler Distinguished Professor of Early Child Literacy,” said Dr. André Green, dean of the College of Education. “Her groundbreaking work in early childhood literacy will not only elevate our academic offerings but also impact the lives of countless young learners. Dr. Christ’s expertise and passion for innovative literacy practices align perfectly with our mission to prepare educators who make a difference in the classroom and beyond. Her research and leadership in early literacy certainly brings value to an already great team of literacy professionals and instructors and I look forward to having her make that great team even better as we prepare the next generation of teachers.”
Christ noted that while phonics is extremely important in literacy, it is not the only element that leads to strong literacy.
“One of the challenges is helping people understand that there are multiple areas of literacy and we need to address them all,” she said.
Two elements that are sometimes left out of early literacy are comprehension and vocabulary. Part of her role will involve educating not only future teachers, but helping the community understand all that goes into strong early literacy.
“Dr. Christ’s expertise in early literacy, combined with her passion for community-driven initiatives, positions her to make a meaningful impact on literacy teaching and learning in eastern North Carolina and beyond,” said Dr. Elizabeth Swaggerty, chair of the Department of Literacy Studies, English Education and History Education and interim chair of the Department of Elementary and Middle Grades Education.
Christ acknowledged the important role that families and the community play in ensuring a child has strong literacy skills. While she was able to read to her daughter early and provide a lot of books in their household, she knows that may not be possible for all families.
“It’s really important that we support all families and communities to uplift their ability to support their kids, whether that’s through ensuring that all families have access to books for their children, or whether that’s through providing parent education opportunities,” she said. “We want to really think broadly about access, in terms of being able to include everyone where they are with the resources they have, and simultaneously trying to get resources to people who would benefit from those resources.”