Research

My research agenda was first sparked during my undergraduate studies at UNC. In 2014, I revisited my experience as a North Carolina debutante and asked how young women and their families understood the ball's purpose today. My undergraduate honors thesis resulted in a rich qualitative project showing how institutions, such as families and clubs, interlock to ensure that group membership is passed on to members of the next generation. My thesis received highest honors, and I presented my research at the 2015 Southern Sociological Society conference. Importantly, countless strangers have contacted me over the years to tell me they read my UNC-archived thesis and found that my deep analysis of debutante rewards and sacrifices helped them better understand their own experiences. My research was recently featured on Recovering Debs, a top-charted documentary podcast by Mary Lambeth Moore, peeling back the layers of North Carolina's white debutante history.

For my master's thesis, I interviewed 30 middle-income North Carolinians who received at least one CARES stimulus check payment. My study focuses on the tension that arises between ideology and self-interest and uncovers ways that people seek to resolve this tension. I defended my MA in March of 2023, and I have had the opportunity to present my work for feedback at the 2023 Southern Sociological Society conference and the 2023 American Sociological Association conference.

My dissertation examines how memories of regional contention have been passed down through Southern families. My project received an Honorable Mention from the National Science Foundation's Graduate Research Program Fellowship.