Dr. Chris Thurber is a board-certified clinical psychologist and father. He earned his BA in psychology from Harvard University and his PhD in clinical child psychology from UCLA. During the academic year, Chris serves as a teacher and school psychologist at Phillips Exeter Academy, a coeducational boarding high school in New Hampshire. He also volunteers on the American Camp Association's research committee.

In addition to numerous scholarly articles and book chapters on homesickness and children's mental health, Chris is the co-author, with Dr. Jon Malinowski, of the best-selling Summer Camp Handbook and the host of ACA's homesickness prevention program, entitled The Secret Ingredients of Summer Camp Success.

Chris has traveled extensively throughout North America and South America to provide consultations and training workshops to camps, schools, and other organizations. He is the founder, with Evan Heltay, of ExpertOnlineTraining.com, the premier online resource for youth development professionals.

All of Chris's work is guided by the principles of leadership-by-example and social connection. Since 1980, he has returned each summer to the camp where he grew up to serve as Waterfront Director and a member of the senior staff. Chris and his wife Simonida, a chemist, have two boys: Dacha, born in 2002, and Sava, born in 2004.