I am a current Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Georgia. I will be transitioning to a new position in the Department of Human Development in Teachers College in January 2025.

I study students' motivation to learn in challenging contexts, with a special focus on math and science during youth and adolescence.

Background

Understanding how and why students are motivated to learn is critical for helping them to reach their full academic potential and for broadening participation in certain educational pathways. My work focuses on understanding and improving students' motivation to learn during middle school, high school, and college. 

Research

I explore how students' motivation (an internal state that directs students towards or away from learning) affects their academic participation, achievement, and career trajectories. I also study how to develop and test motivational interventions that help students learn more effectively and address barriers that limit academic participation in challenging settings.

View Publications →

Motivation and Academic Challenges Lab →

Education and Training

I earned a B.A., summa cum laude, from Washington University in St. Louis in 2011, with a double major in Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology and Educational Studies. 

I earned a Ph.D. in Human Development from the University of Maryland in 2017, working with Dr. Allan Wigfield. I pursued a specialization in Educational Psychology and I also earned a graduate certificate in Measurement, Statistics, and Evaluation.

I completed a National Science Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship during 2017-2019, focusing on the study of motivational development and interventions in college.