She was previously associate professor of sociology at Bowling Green State University. Her research focuses on the health and well-being of the children of immigrants, including patterns and trends in household and family structure, child poverty, welfare receipt, food security, and child obesity and on the relationship between the policy contexts of reception and the incorporation patterns of immigrants and their children. She is also engaged in applied research that seeks to evaluate and revise methods for estimating the size, growth, and characteristics of the unauthorized migrant population living in the United States. She has an M.S. in sociology from the University of Wisconsin and a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Texas.