The Student Outbreak Response Team (SORT) was developed by Professor Megan Jehn in 2017 to prepare undergraduate and graduate students alike for a career in public health. The global health course offering is anything but a traditional class, combining fieldwork and didactics with networking and career discovery opportunities. Students in the course conduct case investigations for the state and local health departments, including the Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) and Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS). Over 100 students were enrolled in SORT during Fall 2020/Spring 2021 to provide critical surge capacity throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. These students were trained to complete COVID-19 Case Investigations through a virtual call center environment. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, students completed case investigations for other infectious and mandatory-report diseases such as Salmonella, E. coli, and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. 

To learn more about SORT, click here.