Biography

I am a PhD Candidate (ABD) in the Department of Political Science studying International Relations. I am broadly interested in how legitimacy is constructed, contested, and refined over time. 

Through engagement with multiple case studies, my dissertation asks: how does public visibility shape perceptions of legitimacy? This dissertation research is organized in three articles. The first article examines early 19^th-century U.S. uses of low-visibility court jurisdiction claims to gradually erode the standing Native American sovereignty and property rights. My second article focuses on the selective creation of public spectacles around nuclear tests between 1946 and 1963, and I consider how the decline of nuclear spectacle influenced long-term support for nuclear weapons programs. Finally, my third article theorizes how visibility affects the construction of international problems by examining the politicization of three virtually invisible transnational material wastes: nuclear fallout, fossil fuel emissions, and microplastic pollution. 

Beyond my research interests, I enjoy working with and on behalf of my students and community here at Ohio State. Teaching, in particular, is central to my scholarly identity; I believe it is the most impactful and rewarding part of an academic life. In 2025, I received OSU’s top honor for graduate student teaching, the Graduate Associate Teaching Award (GATA). Additionally, I like to play an active role in my departmental community, and I have represented the graduate students in several venues, including as the elected Chair of our Graduate Student Organization. My work was recognized with an Award for Distinguished Service in 2025, though I’ve felt most validated in these efforts by the great friendships I’ve developed with my colleagues. 

Before coming to Ohio State, I worked for four years at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. I received my BA from Bard College in 2016 and received the school’s Antonio Gramsci Prize for best senior project in the political studies program.

Research interests:

-             Legitimacy

-             International security

-             Environmental politics 

-             Nuclear politics

-             Territoriality