About

I am trained as a historian. As an academic, my specialization has been Russia and the Soviet Union, food and agriculture, and global history. The stories and comments on this site are to be about those themes, but also about news, events, politics, books, and other elements defining our current moment. In short, it’s about past and present.

In addition to a historian, I am also a writer, teacher, and more.

I have a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University–Bloomington, and earned my PhD in Russian and East European History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2014. My research has appeared in Soviet and Post-Soviet Review and Journal of World History, and my forthcoming book will be published by Oxford University Press. I’ve published book reviews, given papers at a array of national and international conferences, and been a member of a range of academic professional organizations.

I’ve also benefitted from the support of a number of fellowships, including those granted by the UNC–Chapel Hill Graduate School, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, American Councils, and the National Research University–Higher School of Economics in Moscow.

I have taught courses on Russia, global history, food, and related topics at UNC–Chapel Hill, Duke University, Elon University, Meredith College, and Curry College.

You can find my academic CV here or in .pdf form here.

A native of Indiana, I lived in North Carolina for many years, with periods living, studying, working, and researching in Russia mixed in. I recently moved in Rhode Island with my family and our dog, Juno.