Projects with the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice

In Trouble: How the Promise of Diversion Clashes with the Reality of Poverty, Addiction , and Structural Racism in Alabama’s Justice System

My primary responsibility for this work was to conduct the data analysis and to write the methodology section for the final report, linked below. I used STATA to merge two datasets based on our previous surveys on fine and fee use in Alabama. I then had several conversations with Appleseed’s lead researcher to understand their organization’s data needs and to come to an agreement on the final talking points for the report. These productive conversations helped the organization enhance their evidence-based policy recommendations.

Under Pressure: How Fines and Fees Hurt People, Undermine Public Safety, and Drive Alabama’s Racial Wealth Divide

I wore several hats for this work. At the beginning of the project, I helped two individuals on the team develop and pilot test the survey. During survey administration, I acted as the data manager. I kept the paper surveys secure and developed a dataset based on survey results using SPSS. Once the dataset was built, I engaged in critical conversations with team members from Alabama Appleseed, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the project’s funder, the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Based on these conversations, I performed the data analysis in SPSS and translated the findings into accessible talking points for the final report.