Erin Haynes, D.P.H., Kurt W. Deuschle Professor of Preventive Medicine and Environmental Health and chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Environmental Health at the University of Kentucky College of Public Health, is one of 16 University Research Professors for 2023-24. The University Research Professorships honor faculty members who have demonstrated excellence that addresses scientific, social, cultural and economic challenges in our region and around the world. 

College leadership develop criteria for excellence within their area of expertise and then nominate faculty who excelled at these criteria. Each University Research Professor receives a one-year award of $10,000. 

“It’s an honor to be nominated for and receive this high honor,” said Haynes. “I am grateful for the communities that trusted me to work with them, for NIEHS providing funding support to accomplish the work, and my outstanding research team for making it possible."

Also serving as the director of the UK Center for the Environment and deputy director of the UK Center for Appalachian Research in Environmental Sciences (UK-CARES), Haynes’ research focuses on working with communities to address their environmental health research questions. She has been continuously funded by NIEHS for this collaborative research for two decades. Her research has focused on concerns related to exposures and health outcomes associated with living near manganese industries, landfills, hazardous waste incinerators and others.

Most recently, Haynes has launched a research study following the events of the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. She is committed to helping communities, particularly rural Appalachian communities, understand their exposure and related health effects through collaborative and multidisciplinary research. She was recently appointed to the National Toxicology Program Board of Scientific Counselors and served on the National Academies of Sciences Committee on the Guidance for PFAS Testing and Health Outcomes.