Student Research Assistants

Natalie Chong is a doctoral student at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management where she studies health policy and health services research. Her research interests include access to and quality of end-of-life care, as well as aging and health policy issues that impact older adults. She is also an analyst in RTI International’s Quality Measurement and Health Policy Program, where she works to develop performance measures for federal quality reporting programs in post-acute care settings.

Fernanda Escobar is a doctoral student in the Economic and Racial Equity concentration. Her research interests include American immigration policy, immigrant children's and families' experiences, intergenerational mobility, poverty, and equality of opportunity in the United States. She holds a master's degree in public policy with a concentration in poverty alleviation from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. Prior to her doctoral studies, Fernanda was a research associate at the Institute for Economic and Racial Equity (formerly IASP), where she did quantitative analyses of national data to help understand the impact of policies on the racial wealth gap. Fernanda has extensive experience in immigration and refugee policy.

Sarah J. Jerome is a doctoral student in the Children, Youth, and Families concentration at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management. A public-health researcher and training and technical assistance specialist at Education Development Center, Sarah is dedicated to eliminating health disparities and promoting health equity for disenfranchised, marginalized, and underserved communities through education, capacity building, and advocacy. She is a member of the steering committee for the Arc of Massachusetts and a member of the board of directors of the Haitian Health Institute. Her research interests include exploring intersections of race, disabilities, and systems-navigation and their impact on individual wellness. She aims to apply this knowledge to inform advocacy efforts and relevant policy and practice. Sarah holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree from Boston University, a certificate in Disability and Health Policy from Suffolk University, and a bachelor's (BS) degree in biology from Oglethorpe University. In 2019, she completed the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center’s Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Fellowship program.

Ian Moura is a PhD student in Social Policy in the Children, Youth, and Families Concentration at the Heller School. His research interests include services and outcomes for autistic adults, data and measurement, and algorithmic bias. In addition to his studies, Ian is a Community Project Lead with the Academic Autism Spectrum Partnership in Research and Education (AASPIRE). Before coming to Heller, Ian worked with the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF), where he recently led a research team in collecting and analyzing crisis standards of care from different states.

Kartik Trivedi, MPA, is a PhD student interested in workplace inclusion, career pathways, and economic self-sufficiency as related to persons with disabilities. Kartik has several years of experience as a researcher in the workforce policy and inclusion. He has also worked as a researcher in development policies in India. If not in class or at work, you can find him taking photographs on the streets of Boston and surrounding areas. He also thinks that he makes the best chai on the east coast, a claim which is yet to be proven through conclusive research.