Heather grew up in Massachusetts and earned her BS in Interdisciplinary Studies in Neurobiological Sciences with a minor in Health Sciences from the University of Florida in 2018. Her undergraduate thesis focused on the effects of exercise on the default mode network following mild traumatic brain injury. After graduation, she moved to North Carolina, where she worked as a research coordinator in the PTSD and TBI Neuroimaging Lab on a study at Duke University and the Durham VA examining the cognitive effects of subconcussive blast exposure in US Veterans.

In 2020, Heather joined the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program at UNL, specializing in neuropsychological assessment, under the mentorship of Drs. Cary Savage and Doug Schultz. Her research has centered on the effects of sports-related concussions in collegiate athletes. In 2023, she joined the WISH Lab to broaden her research by exploring the role of hormones in recovery trajectories after head trauma. Within the lab, she also applied her expertise in head injuries to investigate the neurological impact of sexual choking, an emerging sexual behavior.

Outside of her research, Heather enjoys staying active and spending time outdoors. You can often find her at the local rock climbing gyms or playing sand volleyball.