Cristina Araujo Brinkerhoff
Lecturer
Cristina Araujo Brinkerhoff, PhD, is a fulltime lecturer and researcher at the Boston University School of Social Work. Her scholarship focuses on social justice, health disparities and health equity, social networks and social support, mental health, immigration policy, and community-based participatory research.
Dr. Brinkerhoff serves as President of the Board of Directors of the Brazilian Workers Center, where she has been a board member since 2015. She is also a member of the Community Advisory Board of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA).
Prior to joining Boston University, Dr. Brinkerhoff worked as a Research Associate at the Institute for Community Health. She also served as an NIH Research Fellow at Boston University and University of Massachusetts Boston, where she contributed to an exploratory study examining the implications of transnationalism, culture, and social networks for the health and health behaviors of Brazilian and Dominican immigrants.
Dr. Brinkerhoff earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology (2011) and a Master of Arts in Applied Sociology (2014) from University of Massachusetts Boston. In 2023, she received her PhD in Social Work from Boston University School of Social Work.
Her work is grounded in a commitment to advancing health equity, amplifying community voices, and promoting social change through research, education, and community engagement.
Related News
View All- Lecturer Cristina Brinkerhoff Shares Her Expertise on Panel on Immigrant and Refugee Women’s Health Care
The panel will explore how immigration-related challenges shape the health and well-being of migrant and refugee women, highlighting the intersections of health inequities, public policy, and lived experience.
- Lecturer Brinkerhoff Shares Expertise on Shaping Public Policy
BUSSW lecturer discusses how collaboration between government and immigrant communities – especially Brazilians – can shape public policy.
- 3 BUSSW Faculty Awarded Small Research Grants
Three faculty from Boston University School of Social Work (BUSSW) have been awarded small research grants to investigate critical social issues affecting marginalized communities. The funding is part of the school’s small grants program, an initiative launched by Prof. Ellen Devoe in 2022 and supported by then Dean Jorge Delva, to provide direct financial support […]
Courses
Communities and Organizations: Analysis and Interventions (MP759)
Advocacy for Equity and Justice (MP780)
Social Work Theory and Practice with Refugees and Immigrants (HB 743)
Racial Justice and Cultural Oppression (HB 735)
Publications
Muroff, J., Do, D., Brinkerhoff, C.A., Chassler, D., Alfaro Cortes, M., M. López, L., Jesus, D., Stewart, E., Roberts, M., Baum, M., Guzman-Betancourt, G. & Sprague Martinez, L. (2023). Nuestra Recuperación [Our Recovery]: Using photovoice to understand the factors that influence recovery in Latinx populations. BMC Public Health, 23(1), 1-11.
Buitron de la Vega, P., Dimitri, N., Brinkerhoff, C. A., Stern, A., Damus, K., Miselis, H., ... & Martinez, L. S. (2022). Virtual Reality Simulated Learning Environments: A Strategy To Teach Interprofessional Students About Social Determinants Of Health. Academic Medicine, 10-1097.
Ginzburg, L. S., Dimitri, N. C., Brinkerhoff, C.A., England, S. A., Haque, S. & Sprague Martinez, L. (2022). Exploring intergroup conflict and community-based participatory research partnerships over time. Research for All. Vol. 6(1).
Sprague Martinez, L.S., Negrón, R., Brinkerhoff, C.A., Tracy, N., Troncoso Lama, M., Reich, A &, Siqueira, C. E. (2022). Project AquiLá: Community-engaged planning to explore the relationship between culture and health. Progress in Community Health Partnerships.
Dimitri, N. C., Ginzburg, L. S., Ron, S., Xu, D., England, S.A., Lowe, L., Botana, P., Brinkerhoff, C.A., Haque, S., Brugge, D. & Sprague Martinez, L. (2022). Advancing Environmental Justice in the Community Using Charrette: A Case Study in Boston Chinatown. Environmental Justice.
Sprague Martinez, L., Araujo Brinkerhoff, C., Conner, B, Troncoso Lama, M., Siqueira, C. E., Negrón, R. (2021). El Sancocho, la bandera y la familia: The social life of food and its implications for Dominican immigrant health. Health Promotion and Practice.
Tang Yan, C., Johnson, K., Araujo Brinkerhoff, C., & Kwesele. (2020) Critical reflections from doctoral students engaging in local and transnational Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) approaches to health promotion. Journal of Social Work Education.
Brinkerhoff, C. A., Siqueira, C. E., Negrón, R., Tracy, N., Troncoso Lama, M., & Sprague Martinez, L. (2019). ‘There You Enjoy Life, Here You Work’: Brazilian and Dominican Immigrants’ Views on Work and Health in the US. International journal of environmental research and public health, 16(20), 4025.
UNDER REVIEW
Buitron de la Vega, P., Dimitri, N., Brinkerhoff, C.A., Stern, A., Damus, K., Miselis, H., Garg, P.S., Sarfaty, S. & Sprague Martinez, L. (under review). Team-based social determinants of health training for medical, physician assistant and social work students using an interprofessional virtual reality simulation. Academic Medicine.
Brinkerhoff, C.A., Negrón, R., Ibe-Lamberts, K., Tracy, N., Siqueira, E. & Sprague Martinez, L. (under review). “It’s like I am still there”: Technology use among transnational Brazilian immigrants in the U.S. to minimize social isolation. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care.
Ginzburg, L. S., Dimitri, N. C., Brinkerhoff, C.A., England, S. A., Haque, S.& Sprague Martinez, L. (under review). Exploring intergroup conflict and community-based participatory research partnerships over time. Research for all.
Negrón, R., Brinkerhoff, C.A., Siqueira, C. E., Reich, A., Tracy, N., Troncoso Lama, M., & Sprague Martinez, L. (under review). Project AquiLá: Community-engaged planning to explore the relationship between culture and health. Progress in Community Health Partnerships.
Negrón, R., Brinkerhoff, C.A., Siqueira, C. E., Korn, A., & Sprague Martinez, L. (in preparation). Project Aqui Lá: Development and testing of the Networked tool to measure cultural consonance and mental health with Brazilian Immigrants.
Presentations
Brinkerhoff, C. A. (2023). “Brazilian immigrant mothers social networks: Implications for mental health and wellbeing.” An oral presentation for the 2023 International Sunbelt Social Network Analysis Conference, Portland, OR.
Brinkerhoff, C. A., Reason, L., Sprague Martinez, L. (2022). “Community organization strategies for COVID-19 vaccination for immigrant communities.” An oral presentation as part of the round table session “COVID-19 still here!”: A Roundtable on the Aftermath Impact of
COVID-19 Virus on Refugee, Immigrant and Forcibly Displaced Communities. American Public Health Association Conference 2022, Boston, MA.
Spencer, R., Johnson, K., Brinkerhoff, C., John, R., Nicholson, J., (2019). Teaching and Learning Through Doing Qualitative Methods: Researcher belonging and the challenge of bias in Brazilian immigrant mothers’ transnational networks of support. A Plenary presentation for the 2019 Society for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology Annual Conference on Qualitative Research Methods, Boston, MA.
Brinkerhoff, C., Sprague Martinez, L., Negrón , R., Siqueira, C. E., (2019). Immigration in the age of information and communication technologies: Implications for social support and health. An oral presentation for the Society for Social Work and Research, San Francisco, CA.
Brinkerhoff, C., Sprague Martinez, L., Negrón , R., Siqueira, C. E., (2018). Immigration in the age of information and communication technologies: Implications for social support and health. A poster presentation for the American Public Health Association Conference, San Diego, CA.
Negrón , R., Sprague Martinez, L., Siqueira, C. E., Brinkerhoff, C. (2015). Transnationalism Networks and Culture: Implications for Health and Behavior. A panel presentation for the XXXV International Sunbelt Social Network Conference, Brighton, UK.
Siqueira, C.E., Negrón , R., Reich, A., Tracy, N., Troncoso, M., Brinkerhoff, C., Diaz, Y., Jaquez, J, Sprague Martinez, L. (2014) Cultural Conversations with Dominican and Brazilian Transnationals: Implications for Health and Wellbeing. A poster presentation for the 2014 Minority Health and Health Disparities Grantees’ Conference: Transdisciplinary Collaborations Evolving Dimensions of US and Global Health Equity, National Harbor, MD.
Negrón , R., Sprague Martinez, L., Reich, A., Jaquez, J., Brinkerhoff, C., Diaz, Y., Tracy, N., Troncoso, M., Siqueira, C.E. (2014). Transnational Networks: Implications for the Study of Culture and Health. A poster presentation for the 2014 Minority Health and Health Disparities Grantees’ Conference: Transdisciplinary Collaborations Evolving Dimensions of US and Global Health Equity, National Harbor, MD.
OTHER PRESENTATIONS
Brinkerhoff, C. A. & Ewing, T. (June, 25 and 26, 2021). Leadership Workshop: “Marielle Franco.” A day long workshop for the Women’s Institute for Leadership Development (WILD). 35th Annual Summer Institute: “Building a Better Future” Zoom Conference, Boston, MA.
Brinkerhoff, C. A. (May, 29, 2021). Career Prep – Dreamer’s Fellowship. Workshop presentation for immigrant youth. Brazilian Worker Center, Allston, MA
Tracy, N., Siqueira, E., Ruf, A. & Brinkerhoff, C. (July, 09, 2020). Let’s Talk about Race: A Panel discussion in Portuguese about the intersections of race and health in immigrant communities. Facebook Live. Available at https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=919377361903512&ref=search
International Woman Network in Solidarity Conference. Brinkerhoff, C. A. (March, 16, 2018). Panel presentation about the impact of immigration status and work environments on mental health of immigrant women. Massachusetts State House, Boston, MA.
Capetillo-Ponce, J., Brinkerhoff, C., Gecker, W., Andrews, A., Hanson, B., & Dewar, M. Visual Media and Urban Space: Finding the Connection Between Where We Live and What We See: Media and Gentrification in Jamaica Plain. A panel presentation for the X Annual Social Theory Forum (April, 24 and 25, 2013). Boston, MA.
Little, T.V., Torres, M.I., Gubrium, A., Brinkerhoff, C. & Manrique A.(2012). “Uno le transmite todo a los hijos”: Latino Parents’ Views of Their Roles as Sex Educators. A student poster presentation for the Fourth Biennial Siglo XXI Conference Sponsored by the Inter-University Program for Latino Research (IUPLR). City University of New York (CUNY), NY.
Grants
2020-2021 Graduate Research Assistant. Brugge D., Reisner E., Durant, J., Zamore, W., Lowe, L., Sprague Martinez, L.S., Kurtz-Rossi, S., Eliasziw, M., & Keppard, B. Near Highway Pollution: From Research to Action, National Institute of Environmental Health and Safety (R01ES026980), $2,260,000.
2013-2016 Graduate Research Assistant. Sprague Martinez, L.S., Negron, R. & Siqueira, C.E. Transnationalism, Networks and Culture: Implications for Health and Behavior, Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research & National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (R24MD00819), $493,873.
2014-2016 Post Master’s Supplement Recipient. Sprague Martinez, L.S., Negron, R., Siqueira, C.E. & Brinkerhoff, C.A. Diversity Supplement. Transnationalism, Networks and Culture: Implications for Health and Behavior, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, (R24MD00819-02S1), $109,316.
Awards and Honors
2014 NIMHD Diversity Supplement Awardee 2014 (3R24MD008819-02S1) – Boston, MA
2014 James E. Blackwell prize for graduate outstanding academic achievement – Boston, MA
2013 Mount Sinai International Exchange for Minority Students Fellowship – NY, NY/ RJ- Brazil
2011 Distinction in Sociology, University of Massachusetts – Boston, MA
2011 John F. Kennedy Award nominee, University of Massachusetts – Boston, MA