She studies the social, cognitive, and language development of low-income and minority children within various ecological contexts, such as parent-child interactions, early childhood education programs, early childhood workforce programs, and related state and federal policies. She served as past associate editor for Early Childhood Research Quarterly and Early Education and Development. She was awarded a research policy fellowship from the Society for Research on Child Development (SRCD)/American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and worked in Office of Child Care. She has served on education non-profit boards for National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and local Head Start programs.