Training

I have received diverse training in developmental, health, and population sciences. My doctoral training in human development and family sciences provided a strong foundation to study how social contexts become biologically embedded to shape patterns in development, health, and aging across the life course. Prior and ongoing mentorship in race and racism has enabled me to think critically about how racism operates across multiple levels of society and mutually reinforcing mechanisms to shape the population-level distribution of disease. Having exhausted all statistical and methods courses in my doctoral program, I have expertise in advanced structural equation modeling and latent variable analysis (e.g., mixture, growth, and multilevel models), as well as more traditional regression methods (e.g,. longitudinal and survival analysis). Additionally, I received training in biopsychosocial mechanisms of chronic disease progression through my Ruth L. Kirschstein Predoctoral Individual National Research Service Award (F31) from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.

I have also received NIH-funded training through my T32 postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Texas at Austin Population Research Center and the National Institute on Aging-sponsored Butler-Williams Scholars Program. These opportunities have allowed me to integrate DNA methylation (DNAm) data into my program of research. For example, I am currently investigating how exposure to structural educational inequities during childhood and adolescence impacts biological functioning in young adulthood via epigenetic pathways. This training will also enable me to elucidate mediating pathways (e.g., epigenome-wide DNAm), socioeconomic, pubertal, and health behaviors) linking adverse early-life school contexts and other early-life exposures (e.g., neighborhood contexts) with biological dysregulation in early adulthood and across the life course.

I also possess significant research experience that is not reflected in my published work. For example, I have held multiple study coordinator roles that provided first-hand experience navigating IRB, hiring and training research assistants, recruiting participants, collecting longitudinal data, and assessing biomarkers of physiologic and biological functioning. I have also played major roles in 3 NIH proposals (R01, R21, T32) and several internal grants. Together, these experiences have fostered my skills needed to carry out an independent, externally-funded research program. More information about my training to date can be found in my CV.