Bilge Cerezci began her career as an educator in Turkey. After earning a bachelor of science degree in early childhood education from Bosphorus University in Istanbul, she nurtured the development of young minds as a teacher in Turkish preschools. Cerezci moved to Chicago in 2007 to pursue graduate studies at the Erikson Institute and completed her master’s degree in child development with an infancy specialization in 2009. She was awarded her PhD in applied child development from Loyola University Chicago and the Erikson Institute in 2017. During her doctoral studies, Cerezci worked for the Erikson Institute’s Early Math Collaborative, which was launched in 2007 to enhance the quality of early math education by helping preschool and early elementary school teachers incorporate effective early math instruction into their classrooms. Her work for the Early Math Collaborative focused on the refinement of a new tool designed to measure the quality of mathematics instruction in preschools and elementary schools. She has also served as an adjunct faculty member in the Child Development Department of the City Colleges of Chicago and the Teacher Education Department at Loyola University. Dr. Cerezci now resides in New York City, where she shares her knowledge and insights with the next generation of educators as an assistant professor in the Curriculum and Instruction Department at St. John’s University.
