2023 — Doctor of Philosophy, Sociology

Department of Sociology, University of North Texas

• Doctoral Dissertation: The University for Who? Student Narratives of Native Identity, Belonging, and Navigating a Racialized Organization

  • Description: Drawing from participant observation and interview data, I examined the challenges and opportunities for cultural belonging among Native American students at a major public university. Focusing on the relationship between individual identity, participation in a Native American student organization, and the context of the university at large, I uncovered how campus is often a site where Indigenous identity is affirmed through connections with Native peers that sustain cultural identity, even when the bureaucratic apparatus of the university may pose major barriers for inclusion and visibility.

• Completed Master of Arts in Sociology, Minor in Anthropology

  • Master’s Thesis: Framing a Sacred Fight: Framing Analysis and Collective Identity of the #noDAPL Movement

2014 — Content Analyst

Content Services, Content Operations, Marketing & Loyalty

At Hilton I collaborate inter-departmentally on material and branding design to ensure quality branding management for Hilton's 22 global brands and over 4,000 properties. I serve as subject matter expert for Digital Asset Operations and advised on multi-year integration of new CMS and DAM tools to enhance asset management capabilities in the content ecosystem. I've strategized and executed search engine optimization methods including meta tags, links-building, search engine friendly optimization, and indexing that increased web traffic and drove marketing goals. I've also recently led implementation of best practices through liasing with brands and inacting efficiency processes across teams to elevate brand visibility.

2012 - 2014 — Editorial and Marketing Assistant

Latino Leaders Magazine

• Spearheaded digital subscription initiative, successfully increasing circulation by 10,000

• Initiated and solidified strategic partnerships with influential Latino organization like USHCC and LULAC

• Crafted copyedited feature articles, press releases and photography for online and print to enhance equitability of Latino success stories in media representation

• Maintained website powered by Wordpress, including site structure, navigation page optimization, marketing and graphics applying to user interactions and website goals

2011-2012 — Photography Intern

D Magazine

• Provided photography for several of D’s extensive online databases, creating and maintaining a digital image database for the proper indexing, storage, and use of archived images

• Curated compelling, community-centered features for all three People Newspapers and D Magazine publications in print and online

• Created concepts for campaign images in Photoshop used in digital and print promotional material to promote D Magazine brand mission