Kayla is from Charlotte, NC and is a second-year MS student studying Epidemiology and working towards obtaining a certificate in Emerging Infectious Diseases. She received her B.S. in Zoology with a minor in genetics from North Carolina State University in December 2021. Throughout her undergrad and during her gap semester, Kayla worked as a veterinary technician at a local veterinary clinic in Raleigh, NC. Kayla is a TA for the Department of Epidemiology at the University of Iowa and works at a local veterinary clinic in Iowa City. At the Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases, Kayla performs DNA isolation on canine blood and diagnostic testing using qPCR for leishmaniasis. Her primary interests include zoonotic infectious diseases, parasitology, and One Health.