Dr. Lawlor leads VNL’s DSI team. She is a community psychologist with expertise in network and systems science, community change efforts, and the use of research evidence. Her research focuses on understanding how community members collaborate and share information to manage complex problems using community-engaged and computational tools. She has partnered with communities working in various issues, including early childhood, substance use, food systems, and K-12 education. 

Dr. Lawlor received her MA and Ph.D. in ecological-community psychology from Michigan State University, specializing in quantitative methods and evaluation science. She also completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in the School of Information at the University of Michigan focused on prototyping a Community Research Ecology to support the exchange and use of research among stakeholders in education. Her work has been honored with a Carol Weiss award for early career contributions to Evidence and Policy and she was named one of Junior Chamber International’s Ten Outstanding Young Americans in 2022.