Center Personnel
Scott Berry
Center Director
Dr. Scott Berry is an Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Berry has been developing molecular assays for the purpose of detecting disease for the last 13 years. He has led many collaborative studies involving engineers, scientists, biologists, clinicians, and public health experts spanning multiple countries as well as the interfaces between academia, industry, and government.
Dr. Berry is both the Center Director and the head of the Environmental Surveillance for Everyone (ESE) research area.
James Keck
Community Science
Dr. James Keck will be heading Pandemic ESCAPE’s Community Science research area. He is an Adjunct Research Professor at the University of Alaska-Anchorage, Research Physician with the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, and guest researcher at the Arctic Investigations Program of the CDC. Dr. Keck is a physician scientist and epidemiologist with expertise in infectious disease surveillance, mixed methods research, and the health of remote, rural, and Tribal communities.
Dr. Keck is the lead of the Community Science (CS) research area.
Matthew Scotch
Data Decisions
Dr. Matthew Scotch will head the Data to Decisions research area. Dr. Scotch is a Professor of Biomedical Informatics at Arizona State University and Assistant Director of the Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering. Dr. Scotch is an expert in genomic epidemiology, bioinformatics, and public health. He focuses on pathogenic RNA viruses with a particular interest in influenza A viruses (human and avian).
Dr. Scotch will be heading up the Data to Decisions (D2D) research area.
Sarah Olson
Director of Health Research for the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
Dr. Sarah Olson is the Director of Health Research for the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), one of Pandemic ESCAPE’s key non-profit partners. Dr. Olson is trained in environmental research and public health and her career has focused on frontline wildlife conservation and One Health challenges. She leads multi-site research focused on understanding and mitigating wildlife health and zoonotic disease threats, often associated with anthropogenic drivers, and helping grow sustainable and effective environmental surveillance systems with communities and protected areas.
Dr. Olson is the head of One Health for ESCAPE.
Sahar Alameh
Education, Training, and Outreach
Dr. Sahar Alameh will be heading Education, Training, and Outreach activities for the center. Dr. Alameh is an Assistant Professor of STEM Education at the University of Kentucky with applied experience in K-12 and higher education digital and print curriculum and lesson design. Her research is largely focused on supporting students in developing informed views of the nature of science and the practices of scientists, particularly during challenging times like pandemics and environmental emergencies.
Dr. Alameh leads the Broader Impacts (BI) research area for ESCAPE.
