I am the William G. Smith Associate Professor of Sociology and Comparative American Studies at Oberlin College. I also serve as Co-Chair of the Sport Studies & Management Program.

My research is published in Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, Critical Sociology, Journal of Autoethnography, Contexts, Teaching Sociology, Journal of Sport and Social Issues, Sociological Perspectives, Sociological Spectrum, Sociological Focus, and Humanity & Society, among others. Broadly speaking, my research and teaching interests include topics related to medical sociology, aging & the life course, the intersections of race, class, & gender, sociology of sport & leisure, and narrative methods. Most recently, an article I published on the repercussions of the intersection of racism and ageism for youthful looking Black professionals received Honorable Recognition for the Kimberlé Crenshaw Outstanding Article Award, awarded by the Critical Race & Ethnic Studies Division of the Society for the Study of Social Problems.

I am an alum of the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship (MMUF) program, and a former member of the Oberlin College women’s basketball team. I was also a 2021 Career Enhancement Fellow through the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, funded by the Mellon Foundation. In 2024, I was an invited participant at the Wenner-Gren Symposium in Spain. In addition, I am on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Elder Policy and am an incoming Editorial Board member for Contexts. I also serve as the Faculty Athletics Representative (FAR) to the NCAA for Oberlin College.

I earned my Ph.D. in Sociology from Case Western Reserve University. In addition, I have a M.A. in Magazine, Newspaper, and Online Journalism from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University and a B.A. in Sociology from Oberlin College with a minor in African-American Studies. I worked as a newspaper reporter at the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, NY before returning to academia.