ResearchI am a molecular anthropologist who explores phenotypic and genetic variation from an evolutionary perspective, focusing on the human pigmentary phenotype. My research is concentrated on two primary and interconnected lines of investigation. In the first, I focus on associations between genotype and pigmentation phenotype, identifying genetic loci that impact variation in pigmentation. In the second, I characterize the evolutionary forces, including natural selection, that have shaped global variation in human pigmentary phenotype using tools and methods from the field of population genetics. This research directly contributes to advances in the fields of anthropology, evolutionary biology, forensic science, and human health. My work has been funded by the Department of Justice, National Institute of Health, and the Wenner Gren Foundation for Antbropological Research, as well as local industry partners.TeachingAt the University of Cincinnati I teach courses at the introductory, intermediate, and advanced/graduate levels in the Department of Anthropology, focusing on genetic variation and evolutionary theory. As a mentor to students in the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program (2011, 2012), I supervised student projects exploring the role of convergent evolution in malaria resistance and skin pigmentation evolution in sub-Saharan African and Island Melanesian populations.Service and LeadershipI served as the Director of Undergraduate Studies for the Anthropology and Archaeology programs at the University of Cincinnati from 2012-2016, and am currently the Interim Assistant Department Head. I am the chair of the Education Committee for the American Association for Anthropological Genetics (AAAG), and serve as an Associate Editor to the journal Human Biology. I have been selected as participant in the 2016-2017 UC Women Lead Program.