Senior Data and Research Analyst
Andrea most recently served as a Senior Research Analyst at the AccessLex Institute Center for Legal Education Excellence for four years. Prior to her position with AccessLex she worked in the Psychology and Law lab at the University of Kentucky, conducting research on jury and legal decision making, and teaching introductory courses on statistics and research methods. She is passionate about making analytical inference accessible to all audiences.
Acerca de
About me
Hello there; I'm Andrea! You can find out about my professional experience and services throughout the rest of my website, but first, a little about me.
Who am I?
I'm a born-and-raised Minnesotan who absolutely loved my graduate school years in the Bluegrass. My current obsessions include paddle boarding, kayaking, reading, building Lego, and crafting. When I'm not working, you will most often catch me cuddling my two cats (Jerry and Lucy), spending time with my loved ones, and crocheting or cross-stitching my way through a new project. I'm motivated by making life better for as many people as I can, in any way that I can.
Favorite author: Kurt Vonnegut
Most recent paddle boarding trip: Huntington-Feigh Mine Lake in Cuyuna
Current craft project: Cross-stitch of the Project Hail Mary movie scene (**potential spoiler**) where Grace and Rocky dip into the atmosphere of Adrian. It was more stunning visually than I could have ever imagined it would be when I read the book.
Most recent Lego build: Trevi Fountain (#21062)
Why do I love research?
Aside from my hobbies, my other favorite activities include asking questions and solving complex problems. There's no better medium for those activities than research: Asking a clearly defined question, collecting data, planning an analysis, parsing the findings, communicating the results, and taking action. If you are inventive or innovative enough, you can use data and statistical analysis to solve any number of problems across any industry. To me, each analytical project is a new opportunity to learn, grow, and provide solutions to someone who needs it.
I originally became interested in research while working as a case manager at a Social Security Disability law firm in 2014. While clients detailed their medical histories to me, they often discussed traumatic abuse in their past that went unreported, or never resulted in any legal consequences for the perpetrators when it was reported. I was desperate to understand why, and hence my first research interest in legal victimization cases was born. It was certainly not my last research interest, and I doubt I've found it yet. Throughout my career my motifs have evolved but one thing remains consist: I love using my creativity and passion to understand and improve the world.
What do my former students say?
While in my Experimental Psychology PhD program, I served as a teaching assistant for introductory and advanced research methods courses and served as the primary instructor for several sections of introductory statistics. I can talk about my experience, education, and skills all day long, but I think that hearing what my former students have to say about me anonymously on official course evaluations is a more meaningful depiction of how I operate: