About
I am a current PhD Candidate in the Department of Government at Georgetown University, specializing in American Government and Quantitative Methodology, with broad interests in political economy, public administration, public opinion, causal inference, and data science. I grew up in Hanover, Pennsylvania and worked at a grocery store in high school. I then studied Political Science at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland where I graduated Magna Cum Laude, wrote an Honors Thesis on civil asset forfeiture, participated in student government, and was elected to a statewide leadership position as the Secretary of State in the Maryland Student Legislature. After graduating college, I began work as a Chief of Staff for Delegate, now Senator, Lewis Young in the Maryland House of Delegates.
I am a Research Assistant in the Department of Government and a Quantitative Researcher at the Massive Data Institute in the McCourt School of Public Policy. At the Massive Data Institute, I work under Professor Michael A. Bailey on topics related to elections, ideology, and the relationship between the stock market and the political betting market. For the Department of Government, I work under Professor Laia Balcells on topics related to civil conflict, rebel alliances, and intra-state wars. Previously, I served as a Teaching Assistant in statistics, causal inference, and R and Stata programming for political science MA and PhD students.
My dissertation examines how labor unions have historically captured and continue to wield political power in the United States. The dissertation will use a combination of methods including regression discontinuity designs, difference-in-differences, historical analysis, and interviews with labor officials to describe how labor activity influences politics in America. My other research projects cover a range of topics including civil service reform, political business cycles, ideology and elections, and enhancing transparency and accessibility of data related to federal bureaucrats and are currently under peer review at outlets such as the American Journal of Political Science, Nature’s Scientific Data, and Research & Politics.
Before graduate school, I was the Chief of Staff for Delegate Lewis Young in the Maryland House of Delegates, focusing on healthcare policy, government oversight, and auditing the state executive branch. Several of the bills that I researched and help draft ultimately became Maryland law such as these bills easing occupational licensure for optometrists and pharmacists, increasing access to care. My time as a Chief of Staff taught me about the complexities of public policy, legislating, and political compromise. I also saw first hand how important oversight is to for a well functioning government. This experience drove me to pursue a PhD in American government and quantitative methods to learn rigorous research skills so that I can further my career in government oversight and policy research.
Outside of my professional pursuits, I enjoy reading political biographies and American political philosophy and watching and participating in combat sports. I particularly find Robert A. Caro’s Lyndon Johnson biography series, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, and Capitalism and Freedom as extremely beneficial for understanding the relationship between politics, society, and the economy in the United States from differing viewpoints. I currently live in Washington, DC and have a rescue cat named Lina.
You can contact me at bfr11@georgetown.edu. I appreciate any comments or critiques on my working papers!