I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Michigan State University. My research focuses on political violence with an emphasis on the behavior of violent non-state actors. My recent projects examine women’s participation in rebel, terrorist and community-based violent organizations, how violence influences conflict resolution, the correlates of terrorist lethality and the determinants of successful peace processes. My work has been published in the American Journal of Political Science,  American Political Science Review, International Organization,  Journal of Peace Research, Conflict Management and Peace Science and in Security Studies. I will be a Presidential Visiting Scholars Fellow at Princeton University for the 2021-2022 academic year.  I received my Ph.D. from Pennsylvania State University in 2012 and B.A. from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.