welcome

I am an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University. I received my Ph.D. from the MIT Department of Political Science in September 2020 and was previously a postdoctoral research fellow in the Institutions and Political Inequality unit at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center.

I study accountability, representation, and state-building, with a focus on the relationship between non-state actors and formal state institutions. My current book project examines the effects of recognizing the collective self-determination rights of Indigenous communities on identity, voting behavior, and state consolidation, focusing on the Philippines. Other research areas and interests include civic education, colonial legacies, effects of aid on governance and conflict, and the politics of state surveillance. In addition to the Philippines, I have conducted research in South Africa, Guatemala, South Sudan, and the United States.

My research has been supported by Making All Voices Count, the Global Partnership for Social Accountability, the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL), the Social Science Research Council, the MIT Center for International Studies, the MIT Political Methodology Lab, and MIT GOV/LAB, where I am also a research affiliate.

Previously, I worked with Mercy Corps and Internews on democracy and governance programs in South Sudan. I hold a B.A. in Political Science from Stanford University.