Assistant Professor
UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow
Research
Steph's research is an exciting exploration of the emerging of Black Geographies. This dynamic area is blossoming thanks to scholars from African American Studies, Political Science, Geography, and Urban Sociology. She investigates how racial capitalism has influenced power and inequality through exclusions and enclosures. By employing community-driven tactics, Steph aims to engage in vibrant conversations with scholars and activists about the ways society addresses blackness and housing.
Research Topics
Political Theory Anti-Blackness
Racial Capitalism
Black Geographies Social Movements Political Economy
Recent Projects
All links will direct you to a new window
The Black Scholar; Special Issue; 2026
Proposals for A Caring Economy
University of Minnesota Press; 2025
Social Sciences; 14(1); 2025
Flowers for Founders; Politics Groups, and Identities; 2025
JSCORE; 9(2); 2023
National Trust for Historic Preservation- African American Cultural Heritage Fund; 2020
Conferences and Invited Talks
“Black Geographies and Ethical Economies” at IAFFE, June 2022, Geneva, Switzerland.
“Rob Them: Competing Ontological Traditions in Geographical Contestations” at UCI Global Forum, November 2021, Irvine, California.
“Black Political Education” at Cal Poly Pomona, November 2020 and 2021, Pomona, California.
“Diversity as Discipline: Decolonizing the Neoliberal University?” for UC Humanities Research Institute, February 2019, Newport Beach, California.
“Fred Hampton and Activism” panel at Association of Black Sociologist, August 2019, New York, New York.
“Innumeracy of Gay and Lesbian Populations” presented at American Sociological Association, August 2019, New York, New York.
“Review of Compulsory: Education and the Dispossession of Youth in a Prison School” presented at American Studies Association, November 2017, Chicago, Illinois.
“The "13th" and Interdisciplinary Approaches to the Examination of State Power through Law: A Discussion with and Lessons from the Work of Millennial Scholars at the University of California, Irvine” presented at Law and Society Association, June 2017, Mexico City.
“The Effect of #BlackLivesMatter” presented at the Pacific Sociological Association, April 2017, Portland, Oregon.
“Patterns of Injustice: Police Violence in Segregated Cities” presented at the Pacific Sociological Association, April 2017, Portland, Oregon.
“The Effect of #BlackLivesMatter” presented at the Southwestern Social Science Association, March 24, 2016, Las Vegas, Nevada.
“Thoughts on Crime and Punishment” presented at the American Society of Criminology Conference, November 18, 2010, San Francisco, California.
“Understanding the Dynamics of Proposition 8 Protest” presented at the American Sociological Association, August 15, 2010, Oakland, California.
“Understanding the Dynamics of Proposition 8 Protest” presented at the Pacific Sociological Conference, April 9, 2010, Oakland, California.
