Kayla Alvis

ETSU Center for Rural Health and Research

Center for Rural Health and Research

Kayla Alvis
Kayla Alvis, PhD, MS
Research Faculty, Center for Rural Health and Research
College of Public Health
423-439-5456 /  
122A Innovation Lab


EDUCATION

PhD, Rural Sociology, Interdisciplinary specialization: Demography, The Ohio State University

M.S., Behavior Analysis and Therapy, Southern Illinois University Carbondale

B.A., Psychology, The University of Mississippi

RESEARCH FOCUS

Social determinants of health, rural health, individuals with disabilities, reproductive health, mixed methods.

RELEVANT PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

  • Health Policy Fellow, AcademyHealth, Washington, DC (remote) 2023-2023
  • Graduate Research Assistant, Ohio Policy Evaluation Network, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 2022-2023
  • Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Fellow, Nisonger Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 2022-2023
  • Health Policy Intern, The Health Policy Institute of Ohio, Columbus, OH 2022-2022
  • Graduate Research or Teaching Assistant, School of Environment and Natural Resources, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 2018-2022
  • Board Certified Behavior Analyst (EI Clinic), Western Psychological and Counseling Services, Portland, OR 2017-2018
  • Clinical Director: Board Certified Behavior Analyst, Juvo Autism and Behavioral Health, Oakland, CA 2013-2017
  • Graduate Assistant, Project 12-Ways, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL 2011-2013

SELECTED PRESENTATIONS

Alvis, K. M., Balio, C., Mathis, S., Leslie, H., Pelton, B., Dean, R., & Meit, M. (2025, November 2–5). Post-pandemic shifts in local public health: Structural change, motivations, and workforce implications. APHA Annual Meeting and Expo.

Huang, Q., Alvis, K. M., & Southerland, J. L. (2025, October 28–30). A roadmap to a dementia-friendly Tennessee. Tennessee Federation for Aging Conference.

Balio, C., & Alvis, K. M. (2025, May 19–20). Strategies for navigating challenging topics in rural health policy. National Rural Health Association Health Access Conference.

Leslie, H., & Alvis, K. M. (2024, September 28). Disability inclusion in local public health practice: A focus on community health assessments and community health improvement. Symposium on Dis/Ability & Debility in Appalachia.

Alvis, K. M. (2023, August 2–6). How place matters (or doesn’t) for health among adults with and without disabilities in Ohio. Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting.

Alvis, K. M. (2023, August 2–6). Provider-required contraception use among reproductive-aged women in rural Appalachian Ohio. Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting.

Ellsworth, D., Brown, C., Albert, J., Alvis, K. M., & Hackenberg, L. (2023, May 18–19). The direct support professional workforce: Empowering Ohio DSPs. Ohio Provider Resource Association.

Alvis, K. M. (2022, August 4–7). Rurality, mental health, and disability: A study of Ohio. Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting.

Alvis, K. M., & Casapulla, S. (2022, August 1–2). How much do you know about health in your county? Exploring publicly available health outcomes data to address social determinants of health. Ohio Rural Health Conference.

Parker, J. S., & Alvis, K. M. (2021, March 9–11). Labor management decision-making, practices, and challenges. Labor Management on Small and Medium-Sized Farms Online Seminar Series.

Alvis, K. M., & Dixon, M. R. (2013). Brief acceptance and commitment therapy: Are the metaphors necessary? Association for Behavior Analysis International Annual Conference.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Alvis, K. M., Sullivan, O. (2025). Recovery and Resilience from Natural Disasters: Lessons Learned and Recommendations from Eastern Kentucky. East Tennessee State University Center for Rural Health and Research.

Alvis, K. M., Smith, M. H., Turner, A. N., & Gallo, M. F. (2025). Provider-reliant contraception use among reproductive-aged women in rural Appalachian Ohio. Women’s Health, 21. https://doi.org/10.1177/17455057251351416

Alvis, K. M., & Ard, K. (in press). Social determinants of health. In SAGE encyclopedia of environmental justice. SAGE Publishing.

Alvis, K. M., Keesee, J., Bornstein, M., Norris Turner, A., Pensak, M., & Gursahaney, P. R. (2025). Perceived infertility and contraceptive use among reproductive-aged women in Ohio. Women’s Health Issues, 35(3), 180–187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2025.02.007

Alvis, K. M. (2023). The need for better definitions and data on “rural” in health services research. AcademyHealth. https://academyhealth.org/blog/2023-12/need-better-definitions-and-data-rural-health-services-research

Alvis, K. M. (2023). Individuals with disabilities in rural America: The need for health services research. AcademyHealth. https://academyhealth.org/blog/2023-11/individuals-disabilities-rural-america-need-health-services-research

Alvis, K. M. (2023). How and why federal policymakers should support research on rural hospital closures. AcademyHealth. https://academyhealth.org/blog/2023-11/how-and-why-federal-policymakers-should-support-research-rural-hospital-closures

PERSONAL INTERESTS

Spending time with my daughter, reading (non-fiction and fiction), traveling, and vintage furniture