Chalandra M. Bryant is currently a professor of Human Development and Family Science at the University of Georgia (UGA) where she teaches courses in family development, intimate relationships, and family theories. Before moving to Georgia, she served as a faculty member at Iowa State University (1998-2003) and the Pennsylvania State University (2003-2010). Her research focuses on close relationships and the ability to sustain close intimate ties. She is particularly interested in the manner in which social, familial, economic, and psychosocial factors are linked to marital and health outcomes. After earning her PhD at the University of Texas, she completed a two-year National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH) post-doctoral fellowship. She serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Family Theory and Review. The International Association for Relationship Research presented her with the New Contributions Award (honoring significant contributions to personal relationships research) in 2002. In 2004 she received the National Council on Family Relation’s Reuben Hill Research and Theory Award (presented for an outstanding research article in a family journal). In 2005 she received the Outstanding Young Professional Award from the Texas Exes Alumni Association of the University of Texas. In 2015 she was recognized as a Faculty Member Who Contributed Greatly to Career Development of UGA Students. Her favorite hobby is hiking. Her nature photographs have been published in a hiking guide.