I hold a PhD in Psychology from Claremont Graduate University, with co-concentrations in Evaluation and Applied Research Methods and Positive Developmental Psychology. As a Southern California native, my academic career has taken place entirely within the region: I began at Irvine Valley College, earned my BA from UC Irvine and MA from Cal State Fullerton, and completed my PhD at CGU. I have since returned to Irvine Valley College as an Associate Faculty member in the Psychology Department.
My professional work bridges program evaluation, applied research, and education. At the Claremont Evaluation Center, I worked in the Youth Development Evaluation Lab, where I managed and contributed to external evaluations of programs serving children, adolescents, and communities throughout Southern California. My experience spans the evaluation process, including evaluation planning, logic model development, quantitative and qualitative research, data analysis, continuous quality improvement, stakeholder engagement, and reporting. I particularly value the challenge of taking complex data and translating it into findings that are both methodologically sound and genuinely useful to organizations.
My research is grounded in positive developmental psychology and focuses on the experiences and well-being of historically underserved and marginalized populations. I am particularly interested in the ways that identity, culture, and context shape development and well-being. My doctoral research reflects this intersection of developmental psychology and applied research, while my work in evaluation has given me the opportunity to examine many of the same questions within community-based programs and organizations.
Alongside my research and evaluation work, I teach psychology at Irvine Valley College, including statistics, psychology of learning, human sexuality, and introductory psychology. Teaching has also led me to become deeply involved in Open Educational Resources (OER). I develop and adapt OER materials with an emphasis on accessibility, academic rigor, and practical application, including building statistics materials around JASP and developing psychology resources for use across multiple courses. I see OER as an opportunity not simply to eliminate textbook costs, but to create better resources—materials that can be intentionally designed around a course, continually improved, and made accessible to every student from the first day of class.
Across these areas, I am most interested in work that combines strong methodology with practical purpose. I enjoy asking difficult questions, figuring out the best way to answer them, and communicating what I find in a way that people can actually use. That approach has shaped my work as an evaluator, researcher, and educator, and continues to shape the projects I choose to take on.
Outside of work, I enjoy the perks of living in Southern California, including the beautiful weather, the beach, trying diverse foods, and spending time with my dog, Blue. I have an enormous sweet tooth, love to bake, and take dessert more seriously than most people.
