I am an Assistant Professor of Political Science in the Department of History, Political Science, Languages & Cultures at Otterbein University, where I teach courses in comparative and global politics. Prior to joining the faculty at Otterbein, I was a professorial lecturer in the School of International Service at American University in Washington, D.C. There, I co-founded the Gender & Sexuality Research Initiative. I am also a faculty affiliate of the Transatlantic Policy Center at American University in Washington, D.C.
I earned my Ph.D. in political science from the University of Florida (2021) with graduate certificates in European studies and gender studies. I have conducted extensive field research in Czechia, Slovakia, and Poland. From 2018-2019, I completed a Fulbright Research Grant while affiliated with the Faculty of Sociology at Masaryk University. I have also been awarded the Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics, a postdoctoral research grant from the Kosciuszko Foundation, and an American Political Science Association Centennial Research Grant, among others.
My research focuses on politics and gender in Central Eastern Europe. Specifically, I am interested in the relationship between social movement activism, gender equality, and policymaking in Central Eastern Europe. My research has been published in Communist and Post-Communist Studies and Feminist Review. My current book project examines the relationship between social movement actors and the state in countries across Central Eastern Europe, specifically focusing on how gender equality activists resist the discursive and political constraints they confront today.
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In the News & Writings section of my site you will find my articles on gender and politics published in Ms. Magazine and my commentary on political developments in Central Eastern Europe.