Pleased to meet you. Here’s a little bit about me.

Though quick to identify as a proud (and persistently homesick) Californian, I feel lucky to have called Chicago home since I moved here to study at The University of Chicago.

political origin story (2008 - 2012)

In 2008 I took a leave from school to work for President Obama's first presidential campaign's Scheduling and Advance department. In 2012, following my 2010 graduation, I worked with same web design team in the White House, this time on the re-election campaign.

Fascinated by projects of persuasion, I next worked as a research assistant for writers Ana Marie Cox and Thomas Frank.  Though their formats, personas and subjects differed, I learned to pick the right pull quote, find the illustrative statistic, and source perspectives that would add to a discussion. Working with these respected writers, I studied the interplay between audiences, pundits, narratives and facts.

I later joined a team at The United Nations in Bangkok, Thailand whose mission was to empower youth around the world to hold their governments accountable for achieving the Millennium Development Goals. I helped design a community organizing curriculum for young political activists.

entry into ux (2012 - 2014)

I wanted to use technology to scale these principles of inclusion, empathy and empowerment, and I learned that there is a name for this: “User Experience Design”. I went on to teach User Experience Research and Design at The Starter League (now Fullstack Academy), The American Design and Master-Craft Initiative and Experience Institute. As UX Practice Lead at Table XI, a digital consultancy, I observed again and again how the most effective solutions come from listening in order to understand people's context, experience, and aspirations.

Drink Tank: A recreational think tank (2014 - 2016)

I founded Drink Tank (a "recreational think tank") with Kate Garmey in 2014. Our goal was to create a space where  it was possible to use one's creative talents to make a positive community impact in a while connecting with other people looking to do the same -- all in the course of one evening.

Drink Tank would eventually grow from a lightweight "pickup game of design thinking" to a consultancy specializing in local market activations. With the help of community partners, we piloted a new approach to corporate community investment. in 2015, we teamed up with Goose Island to travel from coast to coast designing and facilitating locally relevant collaborations.

videos / documentaries (2016 - 2020)

The challenge/opportunity of documenting and editing b-roll of Drink Tank’s magic sparked a keen interest in telling stories visually. Leveraging research skills I made explainer videos and experimenting with longer form videos. Rekindling my interest in politics, I filmed and edited a feature-length documentary following three women running for city council in Chicago.

design leadership (2020 - )

I next returned to Product Design, working at TXI as a Group Manager and Design Lead where I specialized in new product discovery grew the influence and capabilities of the design group. I then helped start a net-new innovation hub for William Blair, a financial services company. I’m currently working with select clients on research, product design and other strategic projects.