She came to SLU after receiving her Ph.D. in Sociology from Arizona State University in 2008. She received her BA from Luther College in Decorah, IA. Her research focuses on gender disparities in physical, mental, and self-rated health among older adults. She also examines gender differences in suicide among the elderly, aging and the sense of control, racial and ethnic differences in health, and occupational turf battles in the health care professions. She was awarded the Susan B. Anthony Aetna Award for Excellence in Research on Older Women and Public Health by the Gerontological Health Section of the American Public Health Association. She regularly teaches the quantitative and qualitative research methods courses as well as courses on aging, death and dying, women's health and aging, and medical sociology.