I am a Ph.D. student in the Media, Technology, and Society Program in the School of Communication Northwestern University, and a member of Dr. Eszter Hargittai's Web Use Project research group. My research interests include issues of trust and identity formation in mediated contexts. I am fascinated by the role homophily plays in the creation of online relationships, and how web users choose whom to trust and befriend in online contexts. 

Most recently, I have worked on the following project:

Hargittai, E., Fullerton, L., Menchen-Trevino, E., Thomas, K. (accepted). Trust on the Web: How Young Adults Judge the Credibility of Online Content.Paper selected for presentation at 2009 International Communication Association Conference, Chicago, IL. (Top 2 faculty paper).

As well, I co-wrote a successful grant application for a Northwestern Graduate School Professional grant, with colleague Jeffrey Treem. 

My previous education includes a Bachelor of Arts in Classics from the University of British Columbia , and a Master of Science in Higher Education Policy degree from the School Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University.

In January of 2009, I traveled to Africa to deliver school supplies to an orphanage in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and returned home as a new parent of two daughters, born in northern Ethiopia in the summer of 2008.

I am currently on leave, and will return to work, school, and blogging on or about Summer 2009.