Staff

Portia Williams is the Associate Provost for International Affairs and an Assistant Professor (Coterminous) in the Department of International and Transcultural Studies at Teachers College, Columbia University. As the College's chief international officer, Dr. Williams guides policy and practice for institutional partnerships and collaborations, oversees the Office of International Students and Scholars, serves as the Campus Administrator for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, and facilitates a range of programming initiatives involving faculty, students, and international stakeholders. Dr. Williams was the founding Director of the Office of International Affairs in 2008, and has led the continued expansion of the College's internationalization efforts.

With more than 25 years of experience in education and development, Dr. Williams has directed, advised, or collaborated on policy and program endeavors in North and Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, East and Southern Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and the United States. Additionally, as an ESL professional, Dr. Williams has held faculty appointments at Georgetown, American, and George Washington Universities, the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, and the University of Shkodra in Albania.

Dr. Williams holds a doctorate in International Educational Development and Policy Studies and an Ed.M in International Family and Community Education from Teachers College Columbia University. She also holds an M.A. in Teaching English as a Second Language from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. Dr. Williams is a former Spencer Research Fellow, David L. Boren Fellow, and Peace Corps Volunteer. 

Blessing is the Senior Manager of Operations & Administration for the Office of International Affairs (OIA) and the Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS). She has a BS in clinical psychology and a BA in Japanese from Tufts University. She also has a Post Baccalaureate in pre-medical Sciences from Columbia University and an MA in clinical psychology from Teachers College. She is an avid reader and filmgoer. To schedule a 1-on-1, please click here.

Barbara is the International Projects and Partnership Manager of the Office of International Affairs. Before joining TC, she worked for a German political foundation in Lebanon and New York as a Program Manager, focusing on projects that encourage political pluralism and work in the peace and security field. Barbara has also worked in a fundraising capacity in a local NGO in the Rule of Law/Good Governance field in Palestine. She has a B.A. in politics and international relations from the University of Portsmouth and an M.A. in international relations of the Middle East from Durham University.

Katrina is a Doctoral Research Fellow for OIA and a Ph.D. student in the International & Comparative Education Program at Teachers College. Before joining the TC community, she developed academic enrichment programs for youth in Rwanda and has worked with the private sector, nonprofits, and multi-stakeholder partnerships to improve educational outcomes for the marginalized. She is interested in the role of multi-national corporations in funding and supporting global education, particularly within education public-private partnerships. She has a B.A. in international relations from Brown University and an M.A. in international educational development from Teachers College.

Originally from Singapore, Bing is a doctoral student in Philosophy and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. Before commencing her Ph.D. studies, she taught Biology, English, and Service-Learning in a high school in Singapore. She also spent two years at the Ministry of Education where she designed and facilitated professional development workshops for educators and school leaders, and led curriculum and policy projects. Her research interests include the areas of ethics, feminist studies, teacher education, higher education, and global citizenship education. She has a BA in Biochemistry from Cambridge University (UK), a MA in Philosophy and Education from TC, and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Education (PDGE) from the National Institute of Education in Singapore. She can speak Mandarin, English, Japanese and (almost) French.

Riley has a BA in psychology from the University of South Florida and is a master's student in the Clinical Psychology program at Teachers College, Columbia University. She is also a research assistant in Dr. Lena Verdeli’s Global Mental Health Lab at Teachers College. Since January 2020, she has volunteered with the non-profit Crisis Text Line as a crisis counselor. She is also a visual artist and enjoys painting and shooting film photography. 

Haley is a master’s student in the Speech-Language Pathology program at Teachers College. She also works as a research assistant in Dr. Cate Crowley’s LEADERS Project Lab at TC. She has a B.A. in speech-language pathology and audiology from St. John’s University.