I attended Iowa State University as an undergraduate and received my Bachelor of Science in Culinary Food Science. However, it was my interest in cooking with seasonal ingredients and my time spent working in a farm-to-table restaurant that led me to the field of horticulture. I had the opportunity to work as a seasonal farm hand on a local fruit and vegetable farm, and it further motivated my desire to pursue a career in the field. 

Following a year of horticulture graduate studies at Iowa State University, I joined the Sustainable Vegetable Production lab as the Research Technician.  I now assist with a variety of research projects that focus on sustainable management practices and technologies that can be used in vegetable production. These practices include cover cropping, conservation tillage, and alternative pest control strategies.