I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Previously, I have held pre- and post-doctoral research positions at Stanford University, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Harvard University. I received a Ph.D. degree in Political Science from UCLA.

I am a scholar of political violence. My research sheds new light on why political violence emerges, the form that conflicts take, and how they end. My work is historically informed, methodologically plural, fieldwork-driven and brings attention to the localized characteristics of insurgents, population, and institutions in shaping contemporary conflicts.

My research has received recognition and support from multiple sources, which include the US National Science Foundation (NSF), Global Religion Research Initiative (GRRI) at the University of Notre Dame, the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) at Stanford University, the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University, the Institute of Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC) at the University of California, San Diego, and the UCLA International Institute.