Carolyn Crisp, MPH, accepted into CDC’s prestigious Epidemic Intelligence Service program
HOUSTON (Oct. 7, 2021) – Carolyn Crisp, MPH, a PhD candidate in Occupational Epidemiology at the Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health (SWCOEH), the NIOSH Education and Research Center program at UTHealth School of Public Health, has been accepted into the Centers for Disease Control’s Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) program. She will begin the program in Spring 2022 after graduating from UTHealth.
EIS is a highly competitive, 2-year post-graduate fellowship in applied epidemiology. The CDC program, established in 1951, is a unique combination of on-the-job-learning and service. Investigating outbreaks in the field is integral to the EIS experience. As CDC’s disease detectives, EIS officers are among the agency’s first-line rapid responders. EIS officers serve CDC and its partners by providing rapid, creative and effective solutions to public health problems. EIS officers help public health officials investigate and control infectious disease outbreaks and respond to natural disasters and other threats to the public’s health.
“It is an honor and a privilege to be selected for the program,” said Crisp. “I would like to give a tremendous thanks to my professors at UTSPH, particularly, Dr. Gimeno, Dr. Day, and Dr. Wilkinson for their encouragement, guidance, and mentorship in helping me achieve this milestone. I am thrilled and excited to embark on this next chapter and am looking forward to the application of what I have learned in the classroom to tackling public health problems both domestically and abroad.”
Nicknamed the original ‘disease detectives’, EIS has played a role in many major epidemiologic investigations in the United States since the 1950s. EIS officers are among the agency’s first-line rapid responders. EIS officers are ready to go anywhere in the world at a moment’s notice.
“In class, Carolyn can always be relied on to ask insightful and thoughtful questions,” said Dr. David Gimeno, Crisp’s academic advisor. “Carolyn’s commitment to interacting with marginalized, discriminated against, and oppressed populations, addressing domestic and global health disparities is inspiring for other students who seek a career in public health.”
Crisp is working on her dissertation on Injury, mental health, and lifestyle behaviors among firefighters in the US with Dr. Susie Day as her dissertation supervisor. “Carolyn has repeatedly proven her epidemiologic prowess in the classroom, as a Teaching Assistant in advanced courses, and during her dissertation research with first responders,” said Dr. Day. “She is extremely well-prepared for this prestigious fellowship and is poised to accomplish any challenge she confronts. Carolyn represents the best of the best!”
The Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health is part of the UTHealth Houston School of Public Health