Kristin Geiser

Deputy Director & Senior Research Associate

Kristin joined the Gardner Center in 2007 and currently serves as a Deputy Director and Senior Research Associate. She contributes to the work of the Gardner Center in many ways: leading community-engaged research projects, mentoring student research assistants, and collaborating with colleagues across Stanford and in the local community — all in service of advancing vibrant research-practice partnerships.  

Kristin has more than 25 years of experience working at the intersection of research, policy, and practice with a focus on creating settings and systems that support positive and equitable youth and community development. She has also served in leadership roles at Stanford University and The National Equity Project (formerly the Bay Area Coalition of Essential Schools) and consulting roles with local foundations and nonprofit organizations. 

Kristin sits on the Leadership Council for Stanford's School-Based Mental Health ECHO.

Education

University of California, Los Angeles, PhD (Education Administration, Curriculum, Teaching & Policy)
University of California, Los Angeles, BA

Contacts

kgeiser@stanford.edu

Projects

Two counselors in Redwood City set up an event to bring awareness to mental health
Mental health and wellbeing | Schools/districts (all)
Mental Health Collaborative supports local schools
Since 2020, the Gardner Center has collaborated with the Stanford Center for Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing and local K–12 district partners to build district capacity to support student mental health and wellbeing.
See the project

Publications

Research Report: Redwood City School District Mental Health Counseling Program (Year 2 Implementation Study)

In the fall of 2021, Redwood City School District (RCSD) placed a full-time mental health counselor in each of its 12 schools. During the program’s second year of implementation (2022–2023), the Gardner Center studied how administrators and counselors perceive and operationalize the counseling role and early indicators of impact.

Authors: Geiser, K., Ren, V. , Heck, D., Lowe, A.
2023

Research Report: Redwood City School District Mental Health Counseling Program (Year 1 Implementation Study)

Redwood City School District set a goal that every student will receive “appropriate social-emotional supports designed to meet their needs,” including a plan to place a full-time, district-employed, licensed clinical mental health counselor in each of its twelve schools for the 2021–22 and 2022–23 academic years. This report provides an initial analysis of that effort.  

Authors: Geiser, K. , Elliott, E., Heck, D., Jackson, K.
2022