Meet our new Research and Evaluation Specialist

Tell us your story.

I grew up outside of Seattle, WA, but came to the east coast for college and have stayed here since. I spent six years in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania completing a graduate degree in Behavioral Decision Research and Psychology, and two years working remotely as an Associate Evaluator at the Office of Evaluation Sciences (OES) in the US General Services Administration. My experiences in graduate school and at OES led me to seek out opportunities where I could apply my behavioral science training to address service design challenges with an eye toward user-centered research.

What values underpin your work and why?

I draw on insights from the social and behavioral sciences to design (and evaluate!) services that work for those who use them. I enjoy thinking creatively about how to use data to understand when services are meeting users' needs and when they can be adjusted and improved. To this end, I believe evaluation can play a significant role in making programs and institutions more responsive, accessible, and effective. I'm committed to delivering transparent, rigorous evaluation work that ultimately centers individuals' experiences.

Why are you interested in being a part of the PHL Service Design Studio?

I am so impressed by how thoughtfully SDS approaches their service design work. Many public services have been designed in ways that make them confusing, stressful, and frustrating to use. I'm excited to work with a team that is very intentional about understanding residents' experiences and incorporating these perspectives into their service improvement process.

What's your most favorite thing to do in your down time and why?

I'm an avid sudoku and crossword puzzle enthusiast. Every Sunday, I sit down with my little coffee and attempt to solve the New York Times Sunday crossword as quickly as possible (my personal record is 14 minutes 31 seconds). I love movies-especially campy horror and sci-fi-and I'm always grateful to receive recommendations on what I should watch next. I took up modular origami (folding identical, individual units and combining them into larger, three-dimensional shapes which retain their structure through friction) as a niche pandemic hobby.

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