Greetings!
I am currently a Visiting Research Fellow at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Usually, you can find me in the halls of Vanderbilt University where I work as an Associate Professor of Political Science. I am an active faculty affiliate across several areas of campus including the College of Connected Computing, the LGBTQ Policy Lab and the Center for Global Democracy. In the past, I earned my doctorate at Duke University and previously held positions or fellowships at the University of Denver, University of New Mexico, and Harvard University.
Generally, my research focuses on the political processes of peace, conflict, and collective action. Current projects address the determinants of protest, civilian responses to political crises, and the study of conflict networks using computational social science methods. For more details on academic projects and past publications, please see my research page.
I am also a naturalist, a published poet, and pretty enthusiastic about horses and birds. I received my naturalist certification through the TN Naturalist Program. These interests sustain me and provide lateral inspiration for my curiosity about the interconnectedness of our world. I reside in Nashville, TN and frequently visit southern Appalachia and central Texas.