About

Professionally, I identify as a researcher, strategic thinker, and problem solver. Right now, I’m energized by working in the human services space through my work with the Digital Benefits Network. I believe that delivering essential services and providing a safety net is one of the key responsibilities of government, a role that only becomes more important in the face of climate change and related disasters.

I currently live in Madison, WI and I’m originally from Durham, North Carolina. I went to the University of Chicago for my undergraduate degree, where I studied Music and Linguistics. Before moving to Madison, I lived in Philadelphia while I completed my PhD in Music and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania.

My dissertation research examined how conflicts over sound become sites for community members and government institutions to negotiate over the future and present of cities. Through ethnographic research, I asked how residents and city government actors in Mexico City differently define, evaluate, and attempt to manage sound, considering what kinds of sounds become problematized as noise. For example, how do concerns about social difference, gentrification, environmental quality, and rights to inhabit and shape the city motivate efforts to mitigate noise? I used a range of methods, including ethnographic interviewing and observations, analyses of social media posts, journalistic sources and policy documents, as well as a qualitative and quantitative review of complaint data, to answer these questions. My research analyzed noise as a social problem, and I drew on my ethnographic findings to outline several implications for noise policy in cities elsewhere. I also used audio recording and storytelling to understand and document the experiences of city residents I worked with for this project. (If you’re interested in learning more, check out my project website!)

As a graduate student, I loved conducting original research and teaching undergraduates. During my time at Penn, I taught two semesters of a world music survey course, emphasizing issues of race, gender, and colonialism. I think the best teachers are always learning, and I was been lucky to work with Penn’s Center for Teaching and Learning as a fellow and as a trainer for new teaching assistants.

I am also passionate about organizing for change and to build solidarity. Early in the pandemic, I started organizing with Mutual Aid Philly, and through early 2021, was one of the core volunteer organizers connecting community members to deliver essential supplies and financial assistance. During my PhD, I was also a member of and organizer with GET-UP (Graduate Employees Together-University of Pennsylvania). Since moving to Madison, I’ve sought out opportunities to learn more about my new city, including through volunteering at the Madison Social Justice Center.