I am a social science researcher, currently serving as a Research Aide & Community Outreach Coordinator in the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research at Cornell University.
My work centers on social and structural determinants of sexual health, with a particular interest in health promotion among adolescents and emerging adults. I explore how positive youth development approaches (PYD) can be used to encourage safer behaviors among communities of young men who have sex with men.
Hand-in-hand with this work, I examine sex-positive and identity-affirming prevention messaging of the early HIV/AIDS epidemic — and the legacies from these materials which still exist today.
Community-engaged, participatory, and action-oriented, my work calls on methods across several disciplines (social work, public health, sociology, human development).
I earned a Master of Social Work and BA (Hons) in Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies from Binghamton University, SUNY. I am staff in the Program for Research on Youth Development and Engagement, where I partner with community organizations to create, implement, and evaluate positive youth development programs.