PhD
October 27, 2026
Living Apart, Breathing Apart: Associations between Racial Residential Segregation, Air Pollution Exposure, and Chronic Disease
Racial residential segregation (RRS) is a key structural driver of health inequities. Racist and discriminatory government-sanctioned housing policies have produced and maintained the spatial separation of different race and ethnicity groups. This separation has shaped the inequitable distribution of resources, opportunities, and adverse physical and social exposures across neighborhoods. As a result, communities of color…
Rare genetic variant contributions to multiple cancers
Clinical and family-based studies have long identified strong associations between rare genetic variants, typically defined as genetic variants with minor allele frequencies < 1% in a population, with pathogenic effects on specific genes and hereditary cancer predisposition syndromes. For example, the lifetime risk of diagnosis across a variety of cancers, including breast and ovarian, among…
Beyond the Crops: The Health Impacts of Precarious Employment
Agricultural workers feed the world, yet they are exposed to chemicals and pesticides, physically demanding labor, and adverse psychosocial working conditions, many of which are features of precarious employment (PE). PE is a multi-dimensional construct encompassing seven dimensions that characterize workplace conditions marked by material deprivation, job insecurity, limited worker protections, and power imbalances, among…
Herpes Simplex Virus in Transplant Recipients: Evaluating Serostatus, Shedding, and Breakthrough Infection
Herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2) are common neurotropic viruses; most adults in the United States and worldwide are infected with HSV-1, and around 1 in 8 are infected with HSV-2. Solid organ transplant (SOT) and allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (aHCT) recipients are at higher risk of HSV reactivation post-transplant than…
October 20, 2026
Geographic mortality and morbidity disparities in the US and Washington State: Migration, rurality, and wildfire smoke
This dissertation examined geographic all-cause and cause-specific mortality disparities in theUS and mental health disparities associated with wildfire-specific air pollution exposure in Washington State. Geographic analyses found that migration and rurality were associated with all-cause mortality, and migration, poverty, and rurality were associated with cause-specific mortality patterns in the US from 2000-2019. Higher county-level out…
Extreme Risk Protection Orders in Washington State and their impact on criminal legal system interactions
Firearm restriction policies reduce firearm-related harm. Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs) are civil orders which temporarily restrict and remove access to firearms among individuals (“respondents”) who demonstrate high-risk behaviors. This dissertation examined the characteristics and geographic distribution of Washington State’s ERPOs and evaluated criminal legal system interactions among ERPO respondents. ERPOs in Washington were predominantly…
Integrating Sexually Transmitted Infection Testing into Pharmacy-Based HIV Prevention for Adolescent Girls and Young Women in Kenya: Epidemiology, HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, and Sexual and Reproductive Health Service Delivery
Adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in sub-Saharan Africa experience a substantial burden of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV. Curable STIs, including chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis, are frequently asymptomatic and may remain undiagnosed in settings where STI services rely primarily on syndromic management. Untreated infections can result in pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, adverse pregnancy…
October 13, 2026
The Urban Environment and Active Living: The Case of Bogotá, Colombia
The built environment fundamentally shapes health opportunities, including those for active living. While research from the Global North has identified the types of built environments that support choice-based physical activity, less is known about their distribution and active-living promoting potential in Global South cities, where activity is often necessity-driven and socioeconomic inequalities and segregation are…
Prevention of Chlamydia trachomatis Infections: Vaccination and Post-Exposure Prophylactic Antibiotic Use
In 2023, over 1.6 million cases of Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) were reported in the United States, making it the most common notifiable sexually transmitted infection (STI). Although CT affects the broader population, young women aged 15 to 24 years and gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) face disproportionately higher risk…
Advancing PrEP Use among Pregnant Women in sub-Saharan Africa
In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), cisgender women are disproportionately affected by HIV, accounting for approximately 63% of all new infections in this region. Pregnancy, a period experienced by many young women in SSA, is associated with an elevated risk of HIV acquisition due to the combined effects of behavioral, immunological, and hormonal changes. Daily oral tenofovir…
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