Karin E. Christiaens

I'm a Ph.D. candidate (M.A., 2016 & M.Phil., 2017) in the Department of Art History & Archaeology at Columbia University specializing in the archaeology of the eastern Mediterranean under the Roman Empire.

My current research investigates the urban topography of Greek cities under Roman rule, with a focus on the proliferation and architectural transformation of built public spaces mediated by series of gateways.

As a practicing archaeologist, I've excavated at the Athenian Agora (2011-2013); the Columbia APAHA excavations at Hadrian's Villa (2014-2015); and the Columbia excavations at the Sanctuary of Poseidon at Onchestos in Boeotia (2014-present), where I've been a site supervisor since 2016.

As an educator, I've served as a teaching assistant, section leader, and instructor of record. I've held several pedagogy-focused fellowships with Columbia’s Center for Teaching and Learning (2017-2020). In the public realm, I've served as a docent for “Gods and Mortals at Olympus: Ancient Dion, City of Zeus” (2016) and “A World of Emotions: Ancient Greece, 700 BC – 200 AD” (2017) at the Onassis Cultural Center, New York. I've also contributed a public essay on the Pergamon Altar to Smarthistory.

As a consultant, I began my work with undergraduate and graduate student writers at the Columbia Writing Center (2018-2019). I was an inaugural fellow at the GSAS Writing Studio (2019-2021), where I designed and facilitated workshops, writing groups, and retreats and developed resources in support of dissertation writers. Currently, I work with MSW and doctoral students at Columbia's School of Social Work, and as a freelance research/writing consultant and editor.