She earned her PhD in Molecular Biology and Genetics at LSUHSC in 2005. From there, she completed her first postdoctoral fellowships at LSUHSC, where she studied Friedreich Ataxia, neurodegenerative disease, and the role of iron and oxygen regulation in the disease. She then completed her second postdoctoral fellowship (F32 sponsored) at Tulane University where she studied limb injury and the role of oxygen in regeneration and aging.