Kacey Ernst

KaceyErnst

Department Chair & Professor, Epidemiology and Biostatistics
photo

1295 N. Martin
Drachman Hall A246
PO Box: 245211
Tucson, AZ 85724

(520) 626-7374
kernst@arizona.edu

Kacey C. Ernst, PhD, MPH is Professor and Chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, where she has been a faculty member since 2008. Her research focuses on the environmental and social drivers of infectious diseases, particularly vector-borne diseases such as malaria, dengue, and Zika. She has led field-based studies in Kenya, Indonesia, Mexico, and the southwestern United States, examining mosquito ecology, transmission dynamics, and public health interventions. Her work includes the development of Kidenga, a participatory surveillance system for mosquito-borne disease, and other community engagement platforms developed to address the COVID-19 pandemic; AZHEALTHTXT and Covid Watch. She uses spatial and meteorological data to understand disease risk. She has published extensively on malaria risk in the Kenyan highlands, community-level mosquito control practices, and equity in vaccine uptake and vector control programs.


Dr. Ernst is active in climate and health research. She served as an author on the 5th National Climate Assessment and serves as multi-Principal Investigator of the Southwest Center on Resilience for Climate Change and Health (SCORCH), an NIH-funded center focused on building research and workforce capacity to address the health impacts of extreme heat in the U.S. Southwest. Her recent work includes studies on climate-influenced vector dynamics, the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable populations, and post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 through the Arizona CoVHORT study. She collaborates with environmental scientists, entomologists, and health communication researchers to improve disease prevention strategies and public health messaging. She has served on national review panels for the NIH and international advisory committees, and she is currently Vice Chair of the American Meteorological Society’s Board on Environment and Health. Dr. Ernst is also engaged in mentoring and public health training, with teaching and capacity-building efforts in Jamaica, Ecuador, and Kenya.
 

Education:

2006 - PhD Epidemiology - University of Michigan

2001 - MPH Epidemiology - University of Michigan

1997 - B.A. Chemistry/ Biology - Lawrence University

  1. C. McNeil, N. Divi, C.T. Bargeron IV, A.C. Dondona, K.C. Ernst, A.S. Gupta, O. Fasominu, L. Keatts, T. Kelly, O.B.L. Neto, Data Parameters From Participatory Surveillance Systems in Human, Animal, and Environmental Health From Around the Globe: Descriptive Analysis, JMIR Public Health and Surveillance 11(1) (2025) e55356.

  2. Y. Li, K.C. Ernst, K. Pogreba-Brown, E. Austhof, K. Heslin, A. Shilen, S. Ram, An analytical evaluation of contact tracing systems using real-world individual-level data, International Journal of Medical Informatics   (2025) 106020.

  3. M.G. Block Ngaybe, L. Azurdia Sierra, A. McNair, M. Gonzalez, M. Arora, K. Ernst, E. Noriega-Atala, M.S. Iyengar, Resilience Informatics in Public Health: Qualitative Analysis of Conference Proceedings, JMIR Formative Research 9 (2025) e63217.

  4. N. Tamari, K.C. Ernst, A.J. Enriquez, M.A. Diuk-Wasser, M.P. Fernandez, K. Berry, M.H. Hayden, Urban tick exposure on Staten Island is higher in pet owners, PloS one 19(11) (2024) e0311891.

  5. E.A. Newman, X. Feng, J.D. Onland, K.R. Walker, S. Young, K. Smith, J. Townsend, D. Damian, K. Ernst, Defining the roles of local precipitation and anthropogenic water sources in driving the abundance of Aedes aegypti, an emerging disease vector in urban, arid landscapes, Scientific Reports 14(1) (2024) 2058.

  6. V. Madera-Garcia, J.R. Soto, K.D. Ellingson, E. Jacobs, K.R. Walker, K.C. Ernst, Preferences and Demand for Mosquito Control among Dengue-Endemic Communities in Peñuelas, Puerto Rico: An Application of the Best-Worst Choice Model, The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 110(3) (2024) 540.

  7. R.W. Liu, Y. Cheng, J.L. Barbati, S.A. Rains, T.E. Crane, K.C. Ernst, The effectiveness of social norm appeals on promoting COVID-19 prevention behaviors: A multistudy examination, Health Communication 39(12) (2024) 2698-2706.

  8. K.C. Ernst, P. Fernandez, M. Diuk-Wasser, A.J. Enriquez, K. Berry, M.H. Hayden, Contrasting perceptions, knowledge, and actions around Lyme disease in an urban area of emerging Lyme disease and an area of endemic Lyme disease in the Northeastern United States, The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 1(aop) (2024).

  9. A. Vaidyanathan, M. Hayden, P. Schramm, C.B. Beard, J.E. Bell, A. Bernstein, A. Bieniek-Tobasco, N.E. Cooley, M. Diuk-Wasser, K. Ebi, Human Health-The Fifth National Climate Assessment, AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, 2023, pp. SY23B-0876.

  10. K.C. Ernst, K.R. Walker, A.L. Castro-Luque, C. Schmidt, T.K. Joy, M. Brophy, P. Reyes-Castro, R.E. Díaz-Caravantes, V.O. Encinas, A. Aguilera, Differences in Longevity and Temperature-Driven Extrinsic Incubation Period Correlate with Varying Dengue Risk in the Arizona–Sonora Desert Region, Viruses 15(4) (2023) 851.

  11. J.E. Coalson, D.M. Richard, M.H. Hayden, J. Townsend, D. Damian, K. Smith, A. Monaghan, K.C. Ernst, Aedes aegypti abundance in urban neighborhoods of Maricopa County, Arizona, is linked to increasing socioeconomic status and tree cover, Parasites & Vectors 16(1) (2023) 351.

  12. M. Arora, A.C. Comrie, K.E. Ernst, Assessing climate and health curriculum in graduate public health education in the United States, Frontiers in Public Health 11 (2023) 1124379.

  13. V. Madera-Garcia, J.E. Coalson, M. Subelj, M.L. Bell, M.H. Hayden, M. Agawo, S. Munga, K.C. Ernst, Self-reported symptoms at last febrile illness as a predictor of treatment-seeking in western Kenya: A cross-sectional study, The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 108(1) (2022) 212.

  14. J.K. Luzingu, N. Stroupe, H. Alaofe, E. Jacobs, K. Ernst, Risk factors associated with under-five stunting, wasting, and underweight in four provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo: analysis of the ASSP project baseline data, BMC Public Health 22(1) (2022) 2422.

  15. M.P. Fernandez, K.C. Ernst, G.M. Bron, K. Berry, M.A. Diuk-Wasser, M.H. Hayden, Outdoor activity associated with higher self-reported emotional well-being during COVID-19, EcoHealth 19(2) (2022) 154-158.

  16. J.T. Bandzuh, K.C. Ernst, J.K. Gunn, S. Pandarangga, L.R.K. Yowi, S. Hobgen, K.R. Cavanaugh, R.Y. Kalaway, N.R.J. Kalunga, M.F. Killa, Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Anopheles mosquito control through insecticide treated nets and community-based health programs to prevent malaria in East Sumba Island, Indonesia, PLOS Global Public Health 2(9) (2022) e0000241.

  17. E.J. Anderson, K. Ernst, D.O. Garcia, E. Lopez, K. Pogreba Brown, E. Austhof, D. Carr McCuin, M.H. Hayden, M.P. Koss, Knowledge of Sexual Transmission of Zika Virus Among Women Who Are Pregnant or Intend to Become Pregnant, Arizona, 2017, Public Health Reports 137(3) (2022) 488-497.

  18. E.J. Anderson, J.E. Coalson, M. Agawo, S. Munga, M. Hayden, E.M. Santos, A.C. Little, N. Tamari, K. Ernst, Factors related to long-lasting insecticidal net (LLIN) use during travel in western Kenya: A descriptive analysis, Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease 47 (2022) 102291.

  19. J. Masel, A. Shilen, B. Helming, J. Rutschman, G. Windham, K. Pogreba-Brown, K. Ernst, Quantifying meaningful usage of a SARS-CoV-2 exposure notification app on the campus of the University of Arizona, MedRxiv   (2021) 2021.02. 02.21251022.

  20. X. Feng, C. Merow, Z. Liu, D.S. Park, P.R. Roehrdanz, B. Maitner, E.A. Newman, B.L. Boyle, A. Lien, J.R. Burger, How deregulation, drought and increasing fire impact Amazonian biodiversity, Nature 597(7877) (2021) 516-521.

  21. J.E. Coalson, E.J. Anderson, E.M. Santos, V. Madera Garcia, J.K. Romine, J.K. Luzingu, B. Dominguez, D.M. Richard, A.C. Little, M.H. Hayden, The complex epidemiological relationship between flooding events and human outbreaks of mosquito-borne diseases: a scoping review, Environmental health perspectives 129(9) (2021) 096002.

  22. E. Anderson, M. Koss, A.L. Castro Luque, D. Garcia, E. Lopez, K. Ernst, WhatsApp-based focus groups among Mexican-origin women in zika risk area: feasibility, acceptability, and data quality, JMIR formative research 5(10) (2021) e20970.

  23. E.M. Santos, J.E. Coalson, S. Munga, M. Agawo, E.T. Jacobs, Y.C. Klimentidis, M.H. Hayden, K.C. Ernst, “After those nets are torn, most people use them for other purposes”: an examination of alternative bed net use in western Kenya, Malaria Journal 19(1) (2020) 272.

  24. P.A. Reyes-Castro, K.C. Ernst, K.R. Walker, M.H. Hayden, G. Alvarez-Hernandez, Knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to rocky mountain spotted fever in Hermosillo, México, The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 104(1) (2020) 184.

  25. S.A. Rains, T.E. Crane, S. Iyengar, N. Merchant, M. Oxnam, M.M. Sprinkle, K.C. Ernst, Community-level health promotion during a pandemic: key considerations for health communication, Health Communication 35(14) (2020) 1747-1749.

  26. J.E. Coalson, E.M. Santos, A.C. Little, E.J. Anderson, N. Stroupe, M. Agawo, M. Hayden, S. Munga, K.C. Ernst, Insufficient ratio of long-lasting insecticidal nets to household members limited universal usage in Western Kenya: a 2015 cross-sectional study, The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene 102(6) (2020) 1328.

Languages Spoken:

English

Courses Taught

EPID 660 ( Spring, in person): Infectious Disease Epidemiology

EPID 453 (Spring, in person, co-taught with Dr. Paul Hsu): Health Data Science

EPID 579 (Spring, online): Applied Infectious Disease Epidemiology

Student opportunities

If you are interested in working with Dr. Ernst on projects, contact her directly via email to schedule a meeting to determine potential alignment. 

Degrees

  • PhD, Epidemiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
  • MPH, Epidemiology and Women’s Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI