Areas of Expertise
- Data science and social justice
- Mathematical modeling of complex systems
- Topological data analysis
- Criminal legal system
- Education equity
- Diversity and inclusion in arts/media
- Environmental justice
- Health care justice
- Quantitative methods for policy
- Public scholarship and science communication
- Anti-racist and inclusive teaching
- Evidence-based pedagogy
Education
A.B. Harvard University, Applied Mathematics
M.S. Northwestern University, Applied Mathematics
Ph.D. Northwestern University, Applied Mathematics
Publications
Grants
Selected Awards, Honors & Fellowships
Dr. Yuniupingu Lecture, Australian Mathematical Society (2026)
Mary and Alfie Gray Award for Social Justice, AWM (2025)
Robert Calderbank and Ingrid Daubechies Visiting Scholar, Duke University (2024–2025)
Pride Month Honoree, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (2024)
Gordon Lecture, Denison University (2024)
Fellow, Oakley Center for Humanities and Social Sciences, Williams College (2023–2024)
Marschak Colloquium, University of California–Los Angeles (2022)
Plenary Lecture, AMS Southeastern Sectional Meeting (2022)
Plenary Lecture, SIAM Conference on Applied Mathematics Education (2022)
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Visiting Fellowship, University of Auckland (2020)
Plenary Lecture, MAA Northeastern Section Meeting (2019)
Plenary Lecture, SIAM Conference on Applications of Dynamical Systems (2019)
Plenary Public Lecture, CAIMS Annual Meeting (2017)
Board of Trustees Award, Macalester College (2015)
SIAM Outstanding Paper Award (2013)
SIGEST Selection, SIAM Review (2013)
Kavli Frontiers Fellow, National Academy of Sciences (2012)
Jack and Marty Rossmann Excellence in Teaching Award, Macalester College (2010)
New Directions Research Professorship, IMA, University of Minnesota (2009–2010)
Robert Sorgenfrey Distinguished Teaching Award, UCLA (2004)
Henderson Dissertation Year Fellowship, Northwestern University (2001–2002)
Fellow, Searle Center for Teaching Excellence, Northwestern University (2000–2001)
Selected Grants
Arnold Ventures — The Effects of Judicial Discretion in Pre-Trial Detention and Cash Bail, $300,000 (2025–2028)
Institute for Computational and Experimental Research in Mathematics — Fingerprint Matching via Topological Data Analysis (2026)
National Science Foundation DMS-1813752 — Variational and topological approaches to complex dynamical systems, $202,524 (2018–2021)
National Science Foundation DMS-1412674/1743963 — Applied dynamics and topology of aggregation systems, $219,488 (2014–2018)
National Science Foundation DMS-1009633 — Pattern-forming dynamical systems in theory and experiment, $258,000 (2010–2014)
National Science Foundation DMS-0639749/0740484 — Modeling and control of pattern-forming dynamical systems, $209,679 (2006–2010)