![]() | |
Type | Private graduate school |
---|---|
Established | 1966 |
Endowment | $50 million (2020) [1] |
President | Mariana Souto-Manning |
Academic staff | 26 |
Administrative staff | 51 |
Postgraduates | 300 |
Location | , , United States |
Campus | Urban |
Website | www |
![]() |
Erikson Institute is a private graduate school focused on child development and located in Chicago, Illinois. It is named for psychoanalyst and developmental psychologist Erik Erikson.
The institute was founded in 1966 by four child advocates: child psychologist Maria Piers, educator and activist Barbara Taylor Bowman, social worker Lorraine Wallach, and businessman and philanthropist Irving B. Harris. [2] It was established to provide training for people working in the recently created Head Start program. Its original mission was to educate early childhood teachers and caregivers. The mission has expanded to the education of anyone who works with or on behalf of young children. [2]
Erikson is led by its fifth president, Mariana Souto-Manning, who assumed the role on September 1, 2021. [3] She succeeded Geoffrey Nagle, who ended his term as president and CEO in February of that year. Previous presidents include Samuel J. Meisels, who left Erikson to become founding executive director of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln's Buffett Early Childhood Institute. [4]
Erikson Institute is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It offers master's degrees in child development, early childhood education, and social work. The institute also offers certificate programs and professional development opportunities.