Education & Training
2026 (expected)
Doctor of Philosophy, Sociology
Northeastern University, Boston, MA
2021
Master of Arts, Sociology
Northeastern University, Boston, MA
2016
Bachelor of Arts, Environmental Policy with honors
Pitzer College, Claremont, CA
2014
Pitzer College in Nepal Program
Kathmandu, Nepal
Skills
Software: Claude Code, Cursor, R, Python, ArcGIS, QGIS, ATLAS.ti
Methods: Text analysis, network analysis, qualitative interviews and coding, survey design
Languages: Tagalog/Filipino (conversational, proficient in reading and writing)
Research Areas
- Organizational resilience (organizational adaptation, cumulative exposure, long-term recovery)
- Social impacts of disasters (social capital, community capacity building, migration, climate adaptation)
- Gender and social movements (feminist leadership, collective action in crisis)
- Mixed methods research design
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Gold, J. R., Deese, A., Nelson, L. K., & Zippel, K. (forthcoming). Gender equity during disruptive events: Communities of practice in the NSF ADVANCE Network. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education.
Gold, J. R., Deese, A., Nelson, L. K., & Zippel, K. (2025). Incorporating gender into institutional crisis response: The case of ADVANCE in 2020-2021. In A. Wroblewski & S. Barnard (Eds.), Gender and higher education management in times of crisis (Palgrave Studies in Gender and Education). Palgrave Macmillan.
Deese, A. (2016). Locating gendered resistance: Interethnic conflict, environmental disaster, and feminist leadership in Sri Lanka. European Scientific Journal, Special Edition, 145-162.
Fellowships
2022-2025
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) T-32 Training Program
2016
Napier Fellowship for Creative Leadership
2014-2016
Doris Duke Conservation Scholars Program
Scholarships & Awards
2021
Northeastern Department of Sociology Summer Research Grant, $1,000
2020
Northeastern University Dean's Scholar Award (year-round funding for 5 years)
2018
AmeriCorps Grantee, $5,000
2018
President's Gold Volunteer Service Award for Special Commitment to Disaster Services
2015
Morris K. Udall Undergraduate Scholarship, $5,000
2014
Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to Nepal, $5,000
Public Presentations
Conference Activity
2024
"Navigating Cumulative Disaster Exposure: A Sociological Approach to Assessing Organizational Resilience in Community-Based Organizations." Panel on Community Resilience Planning: What New Methods Reveal about the Formation and Transformation of a Field, Disaster Research Workshop: Innovating for an Imagined Disaster Future, Disaster Research Center, University of Delaware. May 2-4.
2022
"Gender Equity During Disruptive Events: Communities of Practice in the NSF ADVANCE Network." Panel on COVID-19 Impacts on Gendered Workplaces, American Sociological Association (ASA) Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, CA. August 8.
2022
"Repeat Crises and Communities of Practice: Cultivating Resilience in the Education Sector." Natural Hazards Center Researchers Meeting. University of Colorado Boulder. Virtual. July 14.
2018
"One After Another: The Tyranny of Urgency in Disaster Response at Home and Abroad." Flash talk presented at the New Horizons in Conservation Conference, Washington, D.C. April 18.
2016
"Locating Gendered Resistance: Interethnic Conflict, Environmental Disaster, and Feminist Leadership in Sri Lanka." Thesis presented at the International Scientific Forum, Rome, Italy. April 23.
2016
"When Boulders Fall, Who Carries the Weight? Examining Adverse Impacts of Climate Change and Climate-Induced Disasters on Women in Rural Nepal." Study abroad research presented at the RES/CON: Disaster and Resilience Conference Student Research Expo, New Orleans, LA. March 1-3.
Research Positions
2025-2026
Global Resilience Institute, Northeastern University, Pre-Doctoral Fellow
- Wrote and submitted $400K NSF Science of Organizations proposal (under review)
- Assisted with the co-development of tools integrating National Weather Model for enhanced flood planning and community preparedness in VT and MO
- Led data collection and analysis of community resilience indicators for NOAA-funded USVI research
2023-2024
Research Assistant, NSF-funded project: Private Governance and Climate Change
PIs: Dr. Sara Constantino and Dr. Alicia Cooperman
- Examined factors shaping how individuals experience and respond to extreme weather and climatic pressures on the Texas Coast
- Coordinated fieldwork trips in Galveston and Brownsville, Texas
- Led qualitative research efforts for multi-researcher team, including conducting in-person interviews, overseeing intercoder agreement, coding data in ATLAS.ti, and writing research reports for publications and conference presentations
2021-2023
Research Assistant, NSF-funded project: Innovation Networks: The Creation and Diffusion of Gender Equity Ideas in Universities
PIs: Dr. Katrina Zippel and Dr. Laura Nelson
- Assisted with study design and implementation examining how relationships within the NSF ADVANCE network shaped institutional pandemic responses using a CoP framework
- Conducted 46 interviews with university administrators and faculty
- Coded and analyzed all interviews using ATLAS.ti and conducted extensive literature review
- Co-authored two resulting publications
Professional Experience
2018-2020
Coastal Resources Manager, U.S. Peace Corps. Marinduque, Philippines
Joint appointment with Provincial Government Environmental and Natural Resources Office and Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office
- Monitored the effects of the 2019 El Nino on coral bleaching across 4 MPAs
- Facilitated the submission of a grant proposal with the Department of Education to develop a children's book on holistic disaster risk reduction and preparedness for elementary learners
- Coordinated 3 one-week EcoArt Summer Camps to engage over 100 youth in conversations around local climate change, sustainable agriculture, and zero waste
2017-2018
Regional Preparedness Coordinator, AmeriCorps. Oakland, CA
- Designed and implemented a youth disaster education program in 13 middle schools
- Recruited and trained multi-lingual volunteers
- Educated 1,500+ students in disaster preparedness in underserved schools/communities
- Served 500+ hours as a disaster responder in the areas of mass care and casework
2015
Geospatial Modeling Assistant, Conservation Science Partners. Truckee, CA
- Conducted geospatial and remote sensing analysis using ArcGIS, SAS Excel
- Synthesized ecological and population models of invasive cheatgrass in Nevada
- Collaborated in the creation of the Global Land Use Emergent Database
Teaching Experience
2026
Teaching Assistant, SOCL: Sociology of Health and Illness (with Dr. Gabriel Santos, Northeastern University). Spring.
Teaching Assistant, SOCL: Gender in a Changing Society (with Dr. Eileen Otis, Northeastern University). Spring.
2021
Teaching Assistant, ANTH: Global Markets, Local Cultures (with Dr. Nina Sylvanus, Northeastern University). Spring.
2020
Teaching Assistant, ANTH: Peoples and Cultures (with Dr. Klein, Northeastern University). Fall.
2017
Environmental Educator, Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES). Aspen, CO. Summer.
- Led groups of 10-20 students (ages 5-12) in four 2-week-long environmental courses
2016-2017
English Language Educator, Teachers for Vietnam Fellowship. Can Tho, Vietnam.
- Developed lesson plans to teach core English concepts
- Taught 4 courses per semester with 50 students in each class
- Advised students on future career and academic planning
Volunteer Experience
2026-2028
Climate Resilience Community Liaison, Town of Swampscott
Serving as one of five selected liaisons to translate between town staff and diverse community voices, facilitate trust in neighborhoods not typically engaged by town hall, and ensure resilience planning reflects lived experiences.
2018
Refugee Family Mentor, No One Left Behind, Oakland, CA (4 months)
2017
NorCal Wildfires Disaster Responder, Santa Rosa, CA (200 hours)
Managed night shift at Red Cross Shelter for Tubbs Fire evacuees for 2 weeks. Provided financial and mental health resources for additional 2 weeks as a caseworker.
2017
Hurricane Harvey Disaster Responder, Houston, TX (100 hours)
Conducted search-and-feed missions in impacted neighborhoods. Served lunch and dinner to 300-400 people daily for 2 weeks from Response Vehicle.
2016-2017
Volunteer English Language Educator. Can Tho, Vietnam.
Taught English basics and conversational skills twice weekly at a rural high school.
Leadership
Elected Representative, Peace Corps Philippines-Volunteer Advisory Committee, 2019-2020
Founder and President, Pitzer College Green Initiative Fund, 2014-2016
Appointed Student Representative, Pitzer President's Standing Committee on Sustainability, 2015-2016
Environmental Senator, Pitzer College Student Senate, 2013-2014
Graduate Methods Coursework
2023 (Summer)
Data Science and Text Analysis (in R) through U Michigan ICPSR Program
2022 (Fall)
GIS for Urban/Regional Policy (in ArcGIS)
2022 (Spring)
Social Network Analysis (in R)
2021 (Spring)
Research Methods in Social Science
2020 (Fall)
Analyzing Complex Digital Data (in Python)
2020 (Fall)
Intro to Computational Statistics (in R)
