About

As a sixth-year PhD Candidate in International Relations and Comparative Politics at the American University School of International Service in Washington, D.C., my research focuses political symbols as a tool to manipulate and mobilize national identity, especially in France and the United States. I also work on topics related to political trust, far-right movements, propaganda, misinformation, and political gaslighting in comparative settings.

My dissertation-in-progress examines how the French far-right uses food and restaurants as a symbol of national belonging - or exclusion - to activate “ethnic threat” attitudes among voters. I use a mixed-methods framework to theorize the life cycle of salient political symbols and examine their relationships with identity, preferences, and behavior. This fieldwork was recently carried out as a Fulbright France research grantee in affiliation with the CEVIPOF research center at Sciences Po - Paris from 2021-2022.

Prior to my arrival at American University in 2017, I received a dual B.A./M.A. from Villanova University in 2016 and worked with Atout France. I am an active member of the American Political Science Association, the Midwest Political Science Association, the European Consortium for Political Research, and the International Studies Association. I have previously taught courses in World Politics and in English as a foreign language. I'm also a translation/interpretation volunteer with the Capital Area Immigrant Rights (CAIR) Coalition in Washington, D.C.