Kristi A. Nickodem teaches, consults, and writes about human services law, including the organization and governance of local social services and consolidated human services agencies, the responsibilities of social services and consolidated human services boards and directors, and the confidentiality of social services information. Nickodem is the author of Local Boards of Social Services in North Carolina and a faculty co-lead of the School of Government’s Adult Protection Network. She created and maintains The North Carolina Human Services Hub, a website featuring resources for health and human services professionals in state and local government.
Nickodem’s work also explores how local governments use and respond to technology, including legal issues associated with social media, artificial intelligence, filming on public property, and the First Amendment. Nickodem is a member of the UNC Generative AI Committee and the University’s Faculty Information Technology Advisory Committee.
In 2024, Nickodem received the School's Margaret Taylor Writing Award for her publication “Responding to First Amendment ‘Audits’ in the Local Government Context” (co-authored with Kristina Wilson).
Nickodem joined the School of Government’s faculty in 2021. Previously, she practiced law at K&L Gates LLP, where she counseled clients, conducted internal investigations, and defended clients in litigation. Prior to entering private practice, Nickodem worked for an international nonprofit organization in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Nickodem is a member of the North Carolina State Bar. She earned a bachelor's degree, summa cum laude, from UNC-Greensboro and a J.D. with high honors, Order of the Coif, from UNC-Chapel Hill.
