Linda Gilkerson, PhD, LSW

Professor and Director, Irving B. Harris Infant Studies Program

Executive Director, Fussy Baby Network, Erikson Institute

Linda Gilkerson, Ph.D., LSW, is a professor at Erikson Institute where she directs the graduate training programs in infancy and infant mental health. She founded Erikson’s first clinical initiative, Fussy Baby Network, a national model home visiting program for parents of infants under one year. Dr. Gilkerson is the developer of the FAN (Facilitating Attuned Interactions), an approach that is used widely in home visitation, early intervention, early childhood mental health consultation programs, and physician training to facilitate parent engagement and reflective practice. Her research and publications focus on relationship-based approaches and reflective supervision in a range of settings. She was a long-time board member of Zero to Three, lead or served on many early childhood task forces in Illinois and was recently awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Bright Promises Foundation for her work on behalf of young children.