I take a multimethod approach to understanding the world and am especially interested in research design and qualitative methods. I am attentive to how people tell their stories, and to how research evidence can be produced in ways that are transparent, ethical, and useful for real-world decision making.​​​ 

My career has included academic research, applied program evaluation, and supporting evidence use in human services administration. I focus on generating evidence that reflects real-world organizational constraints while remaining rigorous and human-centered.

 

​​I have spent more than a decade in evidence-related roles in the US federal government. This work has included assessing and improving federal performance data and measures; building conceptual frameworks and theories of change; developing program learning agendas; and overseeing traditional research and evaluation studies.

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I completed my PhD in Sociology and Social Policy at Harvard University, where my goal was to produce research that could support greater equity in human outcomes. My training combined deep engagement with scholarship on social and economic inequality with work on the Resilience in Survivors of Katrina (RISK) Project. The RISK team included both sociologists and clinical psychologists, which expanded my perspective beyond the study of formal institutions and highlighted the role of personal narratives, social support, and meaning-making in persistence and recovery after disaster-related trauma. ​

 

​Navigate above to learn more about my peer-reviewed publications on qualitative research and program evaluation methods; narrative meaning making and social belonging; and the postsecondary education sector.​