She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Government & Foreign Affairs and African American Studies from the University of Virginia, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She went on to earn a Master of Arts in African American Studies and a Master of Philosophy in Political Science from Yale University, where she also earned her doctorate in 2005. Before joining the faculty at Emory, she worked as an analyst for Democratic pollster Mark Mellman. In that capacity, she contributed to the political analysis for clients such as 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry, New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine, Georgia Congressmen John Barrow and Jim Marshall, and the National Education Association.