Biography

Martie Gillen is an associate professor in the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences. She earned her Ph.D. from the Department of Family Studies at the University of Kentucky. She also earned a Graduate Certificate in Gerontology and a Graduate Certificate in Applied Statistics from the University of Kentucky. Martie earned a MBA from Sullivan University. She is a Trust Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) Practitioner and a Financial Social Work Educator.

Prior to her position, Martie served as assistance dean for finance and center administration in the College of Social Work at the University of Kentucky. She served as the Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator on sponsored projects from the KY Cabinet for Health and Family Services totaling over $3.6 million; many of which had a child welfare focus including working with foster parents, adoptive parents, and college students who were also welfare recipients. In addition, she also taught courses in financial social work, social work research methods, introduction to family science, family resource management, and personal finance.  

Martie has been a foster mom for over four years and has welcomed 11 children in to her home, some for a few days, some for months, some for years, and two for forever through adoption.

Research Interests

Dr. Gillen has a focus on decision making in a family context among at risk populations. Much of her research has focused on behavioral economics and consumer financial decision making including the effects of personality traits on decision making. Most recently, her focus has been on parental decision making including the use of TBRI and working with children who have experienced trauma including adverse childhood experiences as the many children in foster care have experienced. Her sponsored projects include leading the Military Family Learning Network Personal Finance team. She teaches courses in the personal finance decision making area and is developing a trauma and children course. She oversees the Accredited Financial Counselor program and the Certified Financial Planner program. Her research focus areas are:

• Decision making
• Trauma
• At risk populations
• Personal Finance