Dr. Nicholas Barr is an assistant professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Dr. Barr received his BA in comparative religion from Columbia University.

As part of this course of study, he focused on Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and spent 6 months at the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics in Dharamsala, India. After graduating, Dr. Barr earned a Princeton in Asia fellowship and worked in education and development in Laos. He went on to complete his MSW with a concentration in adult mental health at the University of California, Los Angeles.

He was a clinical social worker for the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health for two years before completing his PhD at the University of Southern California School of Social Work, while continuing his clinical work in private practice. Before joining the faculty at UNLV, Dr. Barr was a Cohen Veterans’ Network funded postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Innovation and Research on Veterans & Military Families at USC.

Dr. Barr’s program of research focuses on enhancing understanding of risk and protective factors for populations with traumatic experiences, like homeless young adults and military service members. His work includes intervention development and implementation leveraging principles of mindfulness to develop adaptive coping behaviors and improve mental and behavioral health outcomes in these populations. He holds certifications in a number of evidence-based practices including Prolonged Exposure and Cognitive Behavior Therapy.

Nick was born and raised in Washington, D.C. and stays balanced by training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and reading science fiction.