Meril is a Senior Research Analyst at the UChicago Consortium. Previously, she served as the Robert Curvin Postdoctoral Associate at the Joseph C. Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies, Rutgers University-Newark, where she contributed to freshman on-track projects as part of a research practice partnership with Newark Public Schools. Her research focuses on school organizations, with interests in exploring teacher mindsets, enhancing parent-school relationships, and utilizing use of research evidence to improve student outcomes. Her dissertation, titled Essays on Co-production, Social Equity, and Administration of Schools, delved into the role of socio-cultural mechanisms in shaping school-parent partnerships. She is also an alumna of Education Pioneers.