I was first exposed to the natural world in the city’s forest preserves and museums, and I fell in love with the written word in its public schools and libraries. While taking classes at Harold Washington College, a professor convinced me to study the life sciences. I finished my undergraduate studies with a Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
I spent a few years in research after graduating: I monitored invasive plants’ takeover of lakeshore dunes, investigated the spread of hospital-acquired infections, and peered into the brains of finches to find the genetic pathways involved in learning how to sing.
In 2015, I transitioned to science journalism, learning on the job as a freelancer and with a string of internships. My work has appeared in The Scientist, Symmetry, Scientific American, Nature, South Side Weekly, In These Times, and Al Jazeera. I try to use science journalism as a lens to investigate how people, institutions, and communities impact their environment, other species, and fellow humans—for better and worse.
In June 2019 I joined South Side Weekly as its politics editor. I am a member of the National Association of Science Writers, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the National Writers' Union (UAW Local 1981).
