Kelsey Feller received her Master of Public Health degree in 2015 in Community and Behavioral Health from the University of Iowa College of Public Health. She recently became bureau chief of Data Sharing, Privacy and Open Records in the Division of Compliance at the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (IDHHS) where she balances the importance of data security and privacy with facilitating the use of data for public health initiatives and research.

Previously she was Data Governance Coordinator IDHHS where she was instrumental in developing a mutually agreeable data use and sharing agreement with the Iowa Cancer Registry. She has been vital to creating solutions for complicated data requests by guiding the Registry through the rules and regulations for data governance. Her collaborations have allowed beneficial public health data to become more useful for Iowans.

She also gives of her time to the College of Public Health by teaching classes and sharing her experience and knowledge with MPH students, who consistently rate her as an outstanding educator and role model. She has served as a MPH practicum advisor, an informal mentor for many CPH students and graduates, and has advised the college on curriculum updates to meet the current needs of the workforce.

Carla Britton received an MS degree in epidemiology in 2006 and a doctoral degree in epidemiology in 2010, both from the University of Iowa College of Public Health and a MS degree in environmental and public health from the University of Wisconsin. She is currently lead epidemiologist at the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium’s Alaska Native Epidemiology Center (EpiCenter), where she is responsible for providing public health and epidemiologic services to tribal health organizations and the tribal communities they serve.

She oversees a variety of public health and research programs that span suicide prevention, substance use, cancer surveillance, data dissemination, public health messaging, and chronic disease prevention. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Britton served as acting director for the EpiCenter while also coordinating with State and Tribal partners to establish Alaska Tribal contact tracing efforts.

Previously she was an epidemic intelligence service officer for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention within the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare where her work included outbreak investigations and water-related injuries. She also served as a park ranger in the National Park Service.

Dr. Britton is nationally recognized for her expertise. In 2019, she was invited to sit on a National Academies of Medicine panel as part of a consensus study to create a framework for assessing mortality and morbidity after large scale disasters. She has presented her work focusing on Alaska Native and American Indian People on infant mortality trends to the World Congress on Epidemiology and on unintentional injury mortality to the American Public Health Association.

She is committed to mentoring staff at every level within the EpiCenter with particular focus on mentoring Alaska Native individuals into positions of leadership.

View additional information on the Outstanding Alumni Awards.