I am currently in my third term serving as the Director of Operations for the School of Communication Trailblazer’s Program. This program aims to empower and support first-generation college students and students from marginalized and underrepresented communities. It is designed to provide undergraduate students with the knowledge and resources necessary to promote self-efficacy and foster a welcoming, inclusive academic environment.

My work with the SoC Trailblazer’s has been recognized by the Activism & Social Justice Division of the National Communication Association. Click below to see their spotlight post.

I have also served as the lead Graduate Research Associate and Graduate Mentor in Chapman University’s Social Robot Lab. In my role, I trained and supervised a team of undergraduate students in human-machine communication research.

Our primary project involved designing and conducting preliminary testing procedures for chatbots which would streamline interactions between people and healthcare services. Our goal was to not only increase perceived efficacy among patients, but to also increase user experiences.

In addition, our team research on children’s ability to detect lies told by adults. An analysis of 117 podcast episodes from the hit show “The Big Fib” provided strong evidence for the support of Levine’s (2014) truth default theory among the child population. Prior to this study, this was unknown examined by scholars. Results for this study were presented at the National Communication Association’s 108th Annual Convention in New Orleans, LA (2022).