She earned her PhD in Economics from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia in 2015. Her broader research interests include Austrian Economics, Political Economy and Public Choice, Defense and Peace Economics, and Institutions and Economic Development. Her work includes topics surrounding the U.S. military and national defense, including, domestic police militarization, arm sales, weapons as foreign aid, the cost of military mobilization, and the political economy of military technology. She is currently researching how foreign intervention adversely impacts domestic political, social, and other institutions. She is a member of the FEE Faculty Network.