Karlia N. Brown
Visiting Research Specialist
Pronouns: she/her
Email:
About
Karlia Brown is a Visiting Research Specialist at the Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy (IRRPP). She received her M.A. and Ph.D. in Sociology from Northwestern University after working in Business Development and Program Coordination at a reentry nonprofit serving those returning from incarceration in Nashville, TN. Her experience working with returning citizens inspired her graduate research, resulting in her dissertation on the history of reentry support efforts for returning citizens from the 1950s to 1970s. She also conducted research on the community mothering behaviors of Black women activists in Black activist spaces in Chicagoland today.
Karlia dedicated much of her time in graduate school to conducting research with the Center for Neighborhood Engaged Research & Science (CORNERS) Lab at Northwestern where she evaluated the multi-year Chicago Neighborhood Policing Initiative and collected data for the national Violence Interruption Workers Study. Karlia also advanced her research skills as a Graduate Intern with the MacArthur Foundation Chicago Commitment team, a Market Research Intern at Thumbtack, Inc., and a Research Consultant for the Black Public Defender Association's Reimagining Safety Project. She has extensive experience with a variety of research methods including interviews, surveys, ethnography, and archival methods. She aims to use her research expertise and her foundation in Black Feminist Thought to influence policy that improves the lived experiences of overlooked and underserved populations including returning citizens; low-income families; LGBTQ+ individuals; and survivors of violence/abuse.
When she isn't conducting research, Karlia spends her time reading thriller novels, road-tripping around the country, napping in the sun, and drinking (dairy-free) chai lattes by the gallon.