The Analysts

Dr. Dara Shifrer

Dara Shifrer (she/her) is an Associate Professor of Sociology. She started the Career Analysts Lab in 2017. Shifrer’s research focuses on the effects of inequality outside of schools on processes inside schools and educational outcomes, applying multiple methods to neurodevelopmental disabilities, the work of teachers, youth’s social psychological health, and racial/socioeconomic segregation. Prior to entering academia, Shifrer taught math at two middle schools at the opposite ends of the socioeconomic spectrum. The best part of her job is bringing the joy of research to students.

Current Members

Idman Ahmed

Idman Ahmed (she/her) is a 3rd year undergraduate student in the School of Business. Her main areas of interest are business ethics, financial literacy, and its impact on minority groups and people without financial backgrounds. Being part of Career Analysts has helped her understand the different ways people perform and present their research. It has broadened and strengthened her knowledge of various research methods and topics outside of her interest.

Madi Lou Alexander

Madi Lou Alexander (they/them) is a 1st year PhD student in the Sociology Department. Their work focuses on t4t (trans for trans) relationships and finding joy within the field of sociology and holding a marginalized gender identity. They’ve joined the Career Analysts for this coming year while currently working with Dr. Dara Shifrer on a quantitative project looking at American Indian and Alaskan Native social mobility after college, and hope to garner feedback on their thesis from peers within this group.

Cece Austin

Cece Austin is a 4th year undergraduate student majoring in Social Science and Psychology. They are interested in disability studies, and currently working on a McNair project about how disability diagnosis impacts self perception and identity.

Xuan Dinh

Xuan Dinh (she/her) is a 1st year PhD student in Applied Developmental Psychology. Her research focuses on academic achievement among immigrant high school students. The Career Analyst Lab has helped her develop her research interests and thesis ideas through valuable feedback.

Hannah Sean Ellefritz

Hannah Sean Ellefritz (she/her) is a 4th year PhD student and Graduate Research Assistant in the Sociology Department. Her research focuses on educational inequities, standards-based reforms, and teachers' job satisfaction–particularly related to accountability in low SES schools. As a member of the Career Analysts, she has participated in multiple collaborative research projects and receives valuable feedback for her dissertation.

Suzy Fly

Suzy Pappas (Fly) (she/they) is a senior in the Sociology department, with a subspecialty in Psychology and Early Education. Suzy’s research focuses on disability in institutional settings, particularly at the intersection of education and policy. As a member of Career Analysts, her research has greatly benefitted from the invaluable perspectives and creativity of fellow colleagues.

Celeste Janssen

Celeste is a second year graduate student in Sociology at PSU. Her research interests are within youth development, specifically understanding high quality developmental settings and how adults design and lead settings that provide youth with ample opportunities for social-emotional development. .

Emmanuel Legaretta

Emmanuel is a first-year graduate student in the Sociology PhD program. He graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Health. His main areas of interest include medical sociology, health disparities, and labor movements. He is currently a Graduate Teaching Assistant for the Sociology Department and part of the Member Organizing Institute for AFT- Oregon.

Gabby Mota

Gabriella Mota is a first-year student in the Sociology PhD Program at Portland State University. She currently holds a position as a Graduate Teaching Assistant for the Sociology Department. Her research interests include intersectionality, deviance, social mobility, and systems of oppression. Gabby graduated from the University of Portland in May 2022 with a BA in Sociology and a concentration in Criminology.

Mary Muhly

Mary Muhly is a Complex Systems PhD student who explores how curriculum innovation can drive transformation. She focuses on ecological and financial sustainability, using systems modeling to reveal dynamics that pull universities into cycles of scarcity or enable them to build resilience. By integrating Universal Design for Learning principles, she examines how moving beyond our tendency to blame individuals for systemic problems opens space for universities to evolve.

Jessica Niemetz

Jessica Niemetz is a second year undergraduate student majoring in Computer Science. Her research interest is in educational technology and the impact of the digital divide on underprivileged students. As a Career Analyst, she is developing skills in data analysis and thorough examination of existing material.