I am a Lecturer in Sociology at Northern Arizona University with a passion for research and teaching. In my research, I focus on perpetrators of genocide, as well as occurrences of ethnocide of Native American and other indigenous population groups. The development of perpetrator typologies and motivations is of particular interest to me.
My teaching ranges from Native American/indigenous topics, race and ethnic relations, social stratification, to international relations theory, ideology, and research methods. In my classes, I pursue an interactive and inclusive teaching model: students are expected to actively take part in class discussion, prepare presentations, and discover the topics at hand together. It is of particular importance that students hone in on their critical thinking skills and observations when investigating issues, such as political theory or genocide as they affect different population groups.
I have lived in Flagstaff, Arizona since 2004 and have spent much of my professional life at Northern Arizona University. Originally, I came to NAU with a scholarship through the Federation of German American Clubs (VDAC). During my first year as an exchange student, I took several classes with an extraordinarily inspiring professor in political science, who inspired me to pursue political science as a graduate degree and a career. This led me to continue in the political science graduate program at NAU, which I completed in 2007 with a Master of Arts in political science.
A decade and some professional occupations later, I graduated from NAU with my PhD in political science in 2017. During the seven years between my graduate programs, I pursued full-time employment at the Coconino County Board of Supervisors, at a local non-profit, and at The W. A. Franke College of Business. Yet, my volunteer research work with another inspiring professor at Northern Arizona University, who ultimately became my mentor and the chair of my dissertation committee, had led my return to the PhD program at NAU in 2014.
I stayed for my graduate programs in Flagstaff and at NAU because of the incredible academic support for international scholars and the academic inspiration that I experienced at NAU. In addition, Flagstaff is a beautiful, fast-growing mountain town that promotes a healthy work-life balance and provides much opportunity for outdoors activities.