Introduction

I am an Education Researcher at SRI International's Center for Education Research and Innovation.  I am interested in research that informs policies and practice for historically underserved populations and the way people interact within and with educational organizations. My research uses rigorous quantitative and qualitative methodology to generate insight and understanding into the challenges faced by students and school leaders at the district and state levels. 

​Prior to work at SRI, I worked as a graduate research assistant for three research-practice partnerships at Vanderbilt University, including the Tennessee Postsecondary Evaluation and Analysis Research Lab (TN-PEARL), the Policies for Action (P4A) Research Hub, and the National Center for Scaling Up Effective Schools (NCSU). I also served as the Lead Investigator of a study conducted with the Tennessee Education Research Alliance (TERA). I have expertise in conducting research examining educational programs supporting students, teachers, and school leaders, as well as studies examining the relationship between resources and students' academic outcomes. In addition to presenting at research conferences, I have also had opportunities to share and work with research partners and collaborators. 

I completed my doctoral studies in Education Policy and Leadership from the department of Leadership, Policy and Organizations at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College of Education and Human Development. My dissertation, titled, “What Does it Mean to “Have the Means”?: Increasing Historically Marginalized Students’ Access to Capital and Academic Success", consists of three studies exploring how English Learner (EL) and first-generation college students experience and access educational resources and capital, and how access may relate to their educational attainment.

Before my doctoral studies, I taught 5th grade in Phoenix, Arizona and worked as a recruiter for Teach For America, engaging in strategy and outreach for the southwest region. I completed my Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from Rutgers University, with minors in Digital Communication and Economics, and my Master of Education from Arizona State University. 

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