She received her doctoral degree in clinical psychology with specializations in community psychology and quantitative methods where her work focused on the relationship between sociocultural factors (including perceived racism, religiousness, and ethnic identity) and the physical and mental health of adolescents of color. She has completed postdoctoral work in health disparities and children's services research at the University of California, Los Angeles’ Center for Culture, Trauma, and Mental Health Disparities and at San Diego State University where she was the Oscar Kaplan Fellow in developmental issues. Her research interests include understanding the link between sociocultural risk and protective factors and health disparities in adolescents of color with specific interests in Arab-American and refugee youth.