About Me
Hi, I’m Krista, a bioinformatician working in public health!
I am a former APHL-CDC Bioinformatics Fellow with the Virginia Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services (DCLS). My fellowship project was focused on testing and validating new methods for genomic surveillance and cluster detection of bacterial pathogens. I am now a Principal Bioinformatics Scientist with DCLS. In this role, I am still working on genomic surveillance and cluster detection but exploring new projects as well. My professional interests include pathogen evolution, antimicrobial resistance, and genomic epidemiology.
I was born and raised in rural South Dakota, called Washington state home from 2017-2025 while I achieved my B.S in Molecular Biology and M.S in Bioinformatics, and relocated to Richmond, Virginia in September 2025 to work at DCLS for my APHL fellowship project. My personal hobbies include reading (mostly memoirs and fantasy), cooking, and spending time with my wonderfully intelligent and beautiful dog.