Katherine is a social epidemiologist and a community engaged researcher, focusing on how the system of mass incarceration creates and exacerbates health inequities.
Areas of Expertise
Social epidemiology, community engaged research, mass incarceration, health inequities
Education, Licensure & Certifications
- PhD, Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2023
- MPH, Maternal and Child Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2018
- BA, Global Politics and Economics, Washington and Lee University, 2015
Resumes/CV:
Awards
- University of Colorado General Internal Medicine Research Excellence, 2025; Lifespan/Brown Criminal Justice Research Program on Substance Use and HIV Scholar, 2021
- University of North Carolina Office of the Provost Public Service Award for Engaged Research, 2020
Courses
- EPID 6658 Fundamentals of Social Epidemiology
Research Interest
- Community-Engaged Resear
- Epidemiology
- Health Equity
- Mass Incarceration
- Social Epidemiology
Publications and Presentations
- LeMasters, K., Brinkley-Rubinstein, L., Ciplet, D., Cloud, D., Cowan, K., Eisenman, W., Haber, L. Macht, A., Reid, C. Mass Incarceration as a Climate Justice Issue. Environmental Research Letters. 21, 8 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ae5f35; 2.
- LeMasters, K., Cowell Mercier, M., Maner, M., Chen, H., Brinkley-Rubinstein, L. Medication for Opioid Use Disorder in Jail Settings: Barriers and Facilitators to Implementation. Journal of Prevention and Health Promotion. Online First. https://doi.org/10.1177/26320770261441800; 3.
- LeMasters, K., Levintow, S., Lao, J., McCauley, E., Waleed, C., Cullins, Z., Behne, M.F., Brinkley-Rubinstein, L. The Use of Solitary Confinement and In-Custody Mortality in North Carolina State Prisons, 2021-2023. SSM-Population Health (2025): 101865. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2025.101865; 35.
- Cowan, K. Boudreault, J., LeMasters, K., Brinkley-Rubinstein, L. Lagged and non-linear effects of temperature extremes on mortality in US federal prisons: a case-crossover study, 2009-2021. Epidemiology. May 20, 2026. 10.1097/EDE.0000000000002007 ; 36.
- Morales, G., James, J., & LeMasters, K. (2026). Justice-Involved as Prisoners by the IRB: Regulation Without Protection. The American Journal of Bioethics, 26(4), 90–92. https://doi.org/10.1080/15265161.2026.2637079