She has a B.A. in Mathematics with a minor in Zoology and an M.A. in Interdisciplinary Mathematics, both from University of Maine, where she studied computational neurobiology and neuronal networks. She received her Ph.D. in Mathematics from University of Tennessee with a concentration in Mathematical Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. Her current research involves network perspectives of coevolution and consequences for sustainability. She is also active in research in undergraduate interdisciplinary education. She is the Program Chair of BIO SIGMAA, a special interest group of the Mathematical Association of America, and on the editorial board for Letters in Biomathematics, an open access journal for biomathematics education and research.