Katherine Brown

What inspired you to study public health? 

The fact that public health is designed to reach the masses. I view population health in some ways to be more intimate than clinical treatment. Public health is a group effort, providing transparency and education to encourage advocacy of one’s own health.

What has been the single most rewarding experience of your career/studies so far? 

My opportunity to design a novel surveillance system for an understudied ectoparasite at a local zoo!

Where did you do your practicum? What was it about? 

I did my practicum at the Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia, SC. The title of my APE was, “An eco-epidemiologic investigation of ectoparasites and related pathogens at a South Carolina Zoo.” I created a surveillance study of ticks and mosquitoes and also started a novel surveillance project on an understudied ectoparasite known as avian keds.

What do you hope to accomplish in your career? 

I hope to conduct and provide vector research and education at the federal level.

Advice: 

Public health is a very broad field and it takes time to find where you fit in. Doing the work and exposing yourself to different topics will help you decide where your talents are most needed.

If you are working, what is your job? 

Lead Vector Surveillance Technician over an R01 grant at USC.