I am currently building vector surveillance and research capacity at the University of Illinois INHS Medical Entomology Lab. We are collecting mosquitoes and ticks around the State of IL and conducting high-throughput molecular analyses of Illinois mosquito and tick pathogens, microbiomes, and population genetics. I run the State of IL active tick surveillance program. I have additional interests in vector ecology, behavior, functional morphology, and risk analysis. I received a BS in Biology from UNC - Chapel Hill, and an MS and PhD in Entomology from Clemson University. I have completed two postdocs, in American Samoa and Switzerland, on biology and control of insect vectors. And, I was a Risk Analyst for the USDA APHIS. My research interests are in animal behavior, basic and applied biological research, data gathering and analysis, ecology, entomology, invasive species biology, neglected and (re)emerging diseases, symbioses and coevolution, science communication and collaboration, and teaching.