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Welcome and thanks for visiting! I am a PhD Candidate in the Department of Political Science (International Relations) at The Ohio State University, with a minor in Race, Ethnicity, and Gender Politics and a graduate certificate in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. In September, I will be an Assistant Instructional Professor for the Committee on International Relations (CIR) at the University of Chicago.
My research interests include feminist and postcolonial thought, peace and conflict studies, African politics and security, and the role of gender in post-conflict reconciliation. My research agenda is motivated by the question: what would happen if, as scholars of International Relations, we took peace as seriously as war? Broadly speaking, I use feminist lenses to explore the relationship between masculinities, violence, coloniality, and peace on three levels: the individual (experiential), the meso level (local communities), and the State (foreign policy). To learn more about my research, click here. |
My dissertation, “Violence as Peace: Stories of Everyday Masculinities, Violence, and Peace After Armed Conflict,” explores the relationship between war-linked masculinities, colonialism, and the persistence of everyday violence after war. My research asks the question: what do masculinities have to do with interpersonal, sustainable peacebuilding? Using evidence from case studies in Northern Ireland and Burundi, I demonstrate that socialization into particular gender scripts during war, especially 'good guy' masculinities (providers, protectors, and liberators, for example), plays a distinct role in the proliferation of post-colonial violences during so-called times of peace. At the heart of my research is a keen attention towards the lived experiences of everyday people working towards a future beyond war.
My research is forthcoming in a number of outlets, including two edited volumes through Routledge, as well as featured reports from the Mershon Center for International Security Studies at Ohio State University. I have received support for my research from the APSA Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant, the Women, Gender and Politics Section of APSA, the Coca Cola Critical Difference for Women Grant, the Mershon Center for International Security Studies, and the OSU Alumni Grants program.
My emphasis on lived experiences informs my commitment to research that bridges the theory-practice gap. I have peace practitioner-oriented work with Education for Global Peace forthcoming in Cambridge Scholars Press, and have contributed to and led practice-focused research with the Conflict to Peace Lab, Peace Direct, and the Duck of Minerva blog. Additionally, I have worked alongside multiple national and international government and non-governmental organizations on topics ranging from peace program monitoring and evaluation to dialogue as a peace practice. For a complete CV, click here.
I am also an award-winning educator interested in critical studies of political science pedagogy and have conducted research on the role of race(ism) in U.S. graduate-level IR field seminar syllabi, as well as published forthcoming work on peace education initiatives abroad. I find a great deal of joy being in the classroom, and over the years have found myself in various educator roles beyond the higher-ed classroom, including elementary schools, peace training workshops, preschool gymnastics coaching, and leading a Girl Scouts troop for the last six years. To learn more about my teaching philosophy and courses I have designed/instructed, click here.
My research is forthcoming in a number of outlets, including two edited volumes through Routledge, as well as featured reports from the Mershon Center for International Security Studies at Ohio State University. I have received support for my research from the APSA Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant, the Women, Gender and Politics Section of APSA, the Coca Cola Critical Difference for Women Grant, the Mershon Center for International Security Studies, and the OSU Alumni Grants program.
My emphasis on lived experiences informs my commitment to research that bridges the theory-practice gap. I have peace practitioner-oriented work with Education for Global Peace forthcoming in Cambridge Scholars Press, and have contributed to and led practice-focused research with the Conflict to Peace Lab, Peace Direct, and the Duck of Minerva blog. Additionally, I have worked alongside multiple national and international government and non-governmental organizations on topics ranging from peace program monitoring and evaluation to dialogue as a peace practice. For a complete CV, click here.
I am also an award-winning educator interested in critical studies of political science pedagogy and have conducted research on the role of race(ism) in U.S. graduate-level IR field seminar syllabi, as well as published forthcoming work on peace education initiatives abroad. I find a great deal of joy being in the classroom, and over the years have found myself in various educator roles beyond the higher-ed classroom, including elementary schools, peace training workshops, preschool gymnastics coaching, and leading a Girl Scouts troop for the last six years. To learn more about my teaching philosophy and courses I have designed/instructed, click here.