I’m an experienced and skilled researcher and writer who is guided by inquisitiveness, rigor, and creativity. Currently, I’m a postdoctoral research scholar and lecturer in the Department of Anthropology at Columbia University in New York City. I earned my PhD in sociocultural anthropology from the University of Chicago where I was also a fellow with the Center for the Study of Race, Politics, and Culture. My first book project is n ethnographic study of contemporary Black funeral practices in the United States with a focus on Chicago.

In addition to this work, my research background spans a range of topics including the movement to preserve the African Burial Ground in New York City, Black and Latinx women entrepreneurs, African American Studies and Ethnic Studies Programs in colleges and universities, and narrative shifts in social justice issues over time. I have a methodological repertoire consisting of ethnography, archival research, surveys, focus groups and media analysis that I have utilized for independently designed and conducted projects as well as collaborative ones.  

In the past, I worked as a museum educator based in New York City and I’m a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer from Zambia. Someday I’d like to become certified to teach yoga.