She is also interested in conducting research to evaluate how colleges and universities can most effectively support their students. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of California-Los Angeles and her Ph.D. from the University of California-Davis. Her previous research has explored social referencing in infancy, the development of prosocial behavior in toddlers, and preschool-aged children’s memories for traumatic events. Since arriving at Eckerd, she has completed studies looking at the impact of living with a pet on a college student stress and evaluating the effectiveness of the mentor-student relationship.