I am a sociologist of Catholicism, and I study this tradition from a variety of angles including civic engagement, parish and ecclesial life, family and young adulthood, priestly wellbeing, race and ethnicity, stewardship and more.

I am a Visiting Research Fellow at the Center for Church Management at Villanova University. I am also a research affiliate at the Center for Religion and Civic Culture and the Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies, both at the University of Southern California, as well as an Associate Member of the Las Casas Institute of Blackfriars Hall at the University of Oxford.

I have been awarded research funds by the University of Southern California’s Center for Religion and Civic Culture, Catholic University of America’s The Catholic Project, In Trust Center for Theological Schools, Villanova University’s Center for Church Management, the Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation’s Catholic Sisters Initiative, University of Notre Dame’s Center for the Study of Religion and Society, the Religious Research Association, and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. I was previously tenured as Associate Professor of Religion and Society at the Franciscan School of Theology.

With training in both theology and the social sciences, my teaching and research areas include Catholicism, family, young adults, social ethics and religion in American civic life. I am an award-winning author, and my writings on American Catholic life appear in both Catholic and academic publications, including Catholicism at a Crossroads (NYU Press 2025), Cultural Catholics (Liturgical Press 2024), Catholic Activism Today (NYU Press 2020) and Young Adult American Catholics (Paulist Press 2018). Some of my recent projects include suggesting best practices for parish stewardship, exploring Catholic leadership models across the globe, understanding the characteristics of congregational thriving, the efficacy of board leadership among graduate schools of theology, a national study of priestly wellbeing, a study of Catholicism in the United States, a survey comparing frequent and infrequent Mass attenders, a national study of American abortion attitudes, a mapping study of Catholic sisters’ ministries along the US-MX border, a national study of Catholic campus ministers, and an exploration of Hispanic Catholic stewardship.

Driving my research is a commitment to understanding the connections and relationships between actors, organizations, events and so forth. I firmly believe in cross-disciplinary and cross-context collaboration. I have worked with scholars from a variety of disciplines as well as with ministers, practitioners and those in public-facing contexts to apply research to the world.

I publish and present for both academic and public audiences; being able to engage a variety of audiences is incredibly fruitful and I find it to be a good practice. To read more about my work or for my contact information, you can view my CV here. I am happy to respond to media or research inquiries by email.

Of course, there’s more “about me” than my work. I enjoy being with friends and family, being outdoors, and sharing a meal, good laugh, game or story. I attend St. Thomas More Church in Oceanside, California with my husband, Joseph, and our children, Veronica and David.