Meet the Undergraduate Affairs Advising Team

Our Team

Our team collaborates with the undergraduate Schools & Colleges and the University’s support resources to ensuring excellent academic advising for all Boston University undergraduates. Academic advising is integral to the teaching mission of the University and engages students in a collaborative process to explore academic and co-curricular opportunities as part of a plan to realize academic, career, and life goals.

Amie Grills

Associate Provost for Undergraduate Affairs

Amie Grills provides leadership on core academic efforts – from innovative curriculum development to engagement with high impact practices and honors programming – working closely with Boston University’s 17 schools and colleges to promote collaboration and strengthen the undergraduate experience. Amie oversees various branches of Undergraduate Affairs, such as the BU Hub and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP), and liaises with affiliated projects and offices to best support all of our students’ access to the myriad experiences and opportunities BU has to offer.

Amie is also a Professor of Counseling Psychology & Applied Human Development in BU’s Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. Prior to her appointment as Associate Provost of Undergraduate Affairs, she was Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs and Associate Dean of Research in Wheelock. Before her arrival at BU in 2013, Amie was a faculty member in the Psychology Department in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences and Director of the Center for Anxiety and Depressive Disorders in Youth at the University of Houston.

Amie is a clinical psychologist by training who specializes in anxiety, trauma, depression, and behavioral difficulties (particularly in children), as well as the development and evaluation of cognitive-behavioral assessments and interventions, including those conducted using web-based designs. Her research has been continually supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, and she has published three books and over 50 manuscripts in peer-refereed journals. Amie has been nationally recognized for her work, with awards from the American Psychological Association (fellow), the Association for Psychological Science, the Anxiety Disorders Association of America, and the Association for the Advancement of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies. Amie holds both an MS and PhD in Clinical Psychology from Virginia Tech and an AB from Smith College.

Laura Johnson

Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Affairs
lauraj@bu.edu

Laura Johnson works with University stakeholders to develop academic policy and to expand educational opportunities for undergraduate students.  Laura collaborates with the Associate Provost of Undergraduate Affairs to support undergraduate curricular review, to increase student engagement in high-impact educational practices, and to launch new initiatives for undergraduates that foster high quality interactions with faculty and peers.  In addition, she oversees efforts in academic advising, fellowships, and the first-year experience, and she works closely with the BU Hub Office, in support of BU’s first University-wide general education program.

Previously at BU, Laura served as Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Advising and as Associate Dean for Student Affairs in the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. Prior to her time at BU, Laura was a faculty member in History & Literature and in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Harvard University, where she also held a variety of positions in academic affairs and student affairs, including Assistant Dean of Advising Programs, Resident Dean of Currier House, and Senior Resident Dean.

Laura holds a doctorate in American Studies from Boston University, with a specialization in gender studies. She also holds a master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she focused her studies on student development.

Katie Steele

Director for Undergraduate Advising & Student Success
steelek@bu.edu

Academic advising is all about helping students to explore their interests and pursue their goals. As Director for Undergraduate Advising and Student Success, Katie Steele is responsible for collaborating with the advising leadership in the undergraduate schools and colleges to ensure excellent academic advising for all Boston University undergraduates.  Katie takes a holistic and relational approach to advising, encouraging all students to pursue at least two enriching experiences during college.

Katie leads BU’s First-Year Success office and manages a team of seven Assistant Directors of First-Year Success. She also co-chairs the BU Advising Network, a standing committee of the Provost’s Office that connects faculty and staff advisors across campus. Through the annual Advising Symposium, Brown Bag Lunches, and Academic Advising Awards, Katie works to provide professional development and support for BU’s advisors.

Prior to joining the Provost’s Office, Katie was the Director for Student Affairs and Services at the Pardee School of Global Studies. Before coming to BU, Katie was the Senior Director for Student Engagement and Leadership at Harvard University. She has also held roles at Sewanee: The University of the South and Middlebury College. Katie has a bachelor’s degree from Colgate University and a master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Sally Bremer

Administrative Coordinator, Undergraduate Advising
sbremer@bu.edu

Sally Bremer supports excellence in advising for all of BU’s undergraduate students. With the Director for Undergraduate Advising and Student Support, she collaborates with faculty, staff, and central units on campus to develop resources, events, and trainings for advisors. She staffs the Office of the Provost’s Advising Network Committee and its various subcommittees, including the Brown Bag Lunch Subcommittee, the Advising Symposium Subcommittee, and the Advising Assessment Subcommittee. Sally manages the undergraduate advising website and coordinates logistics for all undergraduate advising initiatives. She also supports the efforts of the Assistant Directors of First-Year Success who provide holistic advising to first-year undergrads who start in the fall.

Prior to BU, Sally worked as an events and marketing coordinator for Harvard Book Store. Sally holds a bachelor’s degree in English and theatre arts from the University of Minnesota, Morris and an MFA in theatre – stage management from Wayne State University.