She earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from Molloy, a certification as a nurse practitioner from SUNY Stony Brook and a PhD in global health from Touro University International. Her academic interests include promoting health education for vulnerable populations, raising awareness of global health issues and providing preventative health care to individuals in developing nations. She has made numerous local, regional, national and international presentations on such topics as immunizations, caregiving, and determinants of health and disability. She has served on Congressman Tim Bishop’s Breast Cancer Advisory Board, the Coalition for Environmental Health and the Suffolk County Medical Reserve Corps.