Alum Christiana Bratiotis (PhD’09) Awarded Prestigious Prize for Teaching Excellence
BU School of Social Work (BUSSW) alum Christiana Bratiotis (PhD’09) was awarded the University of British Columbia (UBC), Canada, Killam Teaching Prize for her excellence in teaching and advising. The prize is the highest recognition of teaching awarded to one member of each faculty division. Awardees show leadership in teaching by promoting more equitable and inclusive higher education, excellence in creating a positive learning environment, and teaching innovation.
Bratiotis is an associate professor in the School of Social Work at UBC in Vancouver, Canada, teaching masters and PhD courses in direct practice with individual’s families and groups. She was recommended for the award by her students in the UBC Master of Social Work (MSW) program, where she serves as the faculty chair.
“I genuinely believe that there is no one more deserving of this prestigious award than Dr. Bratiotis,” said Nancy Lin, Bratiotis’ student nominator. “It is nothing but an exceptional talent that Dr. Bratiotis can make anyone she talks to feel truly special, even when they do not regard themselves as such. Dr. Bratiotis exudes unconditional kindness, compassion, understanding, and warmth. These rare qualities raise her teaching and mentorship to levels that other educators, including myself, can only aspire to. She encouraged me to come out of my shell and take on opportunities I otherwise would not have taken.”
Bratiotis has over two decades of experience in academic and clinical practice. She earned her MSW from the University of Nevada, Reno, and received a one-year MSW fellowship at Yale University before pursuing her PhD in Social Work and Sociology at BUSSW. Her research focuses on hoarding treatment and intervention efforts, specifically in affordable housing and community-based organizations. In 2011, she developed the HOMES Multidisciplinary Hoarding Risk Assessment test, which is used by agencies around the world as a measure to understand the level of risk in a hoarding environment.