I enjoy researching interactions between Native Americans and settlers in colonial America/the early Republic. Last year, I completed my history honors thesis on pro-slavery anti-expansionism in eastern Virginia during the mid-nineteenth century. This summer, I completed an OUR Fellowship with Dr. Warren that inspired a paper about Anishinaabe kinship and transcultural constructions of justice in Michigan territory following a murder committed by Ojibwe warriors on the Mississippi River in 1824. I enjoy historical research because I get to work with a myriad resources (yes barely-legible texts, but also paintings, photographs, beaded artwork, clay, etc.) and help people understand why things are the way they are (and also how they can change!). It's a field that requires multiple frames of reference and develops inquiry and empathy simultaneously. It constantly reminds you that everyone's choices matter.
Outside of research, I read historical nonfiction, play D&D with friends, and deliver tours about Iowan history at the Pentacrest Museums. As the secretary of Aspiring Educators at Iowa, a student organization for future teachers, I help create events that focus on social justice, political action, educator quality, and community engagement. I also enjoy time with my partner, Charlotte, and travel as often as feasible (I'm a huge fan of the National Parks Service).