Peter Kessinger

Graduate Student

Peter Kessinger is a Ph.D. student in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences with the Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, working with Dr. Sheryl Magzamen. He is currently working on several infectious disease projects, including vector habitat suitability, fungal spore aerosolization, and pathogen habitat suitability. Peter is trained in data analysis, modeling, geospatial analysis, and several air sampler types, and is a certified drone pilot. 

Peter’s work often involves environmental sampling, remote sensing, satellite data, and animal models, which has him working in the field, in the lab, and on the computer. His work usually revolves around the One Health concept of the intertwined nature of people, animals, and the environment, and his future projects look to utilize drones to aid in sampling campaigns and create exposure assessments for infectious diseases, especially regarding zoonotic diseases and the wildland-urban interface.

Peter’s goal is to help expand the tools available for public health departments so that those health departments can be better prepared to protect and aid individuals.

Peter has lived in Colorado since 1997, and has lived in Fort Collins since 2016. He got his undergraduate degree in Biomedical sciences and Environmental and radiological Health sciences in 2020 from Colorado State University and got his master’s in Environmental Health sciences with a specialization in Epidemiology in 2022, also from Colorado State University. Peter is now working on his Ph.D. in Environmental Health with the goal of graduating in the Spring of 2025.

When he’s not working, he likes to walk around Fort Collins with his dog, spend time at one of Fort Collins’ many breweries, tailgate CSU football games, and hang out with friends. He also likes to hike the nearby Rocky Mountains and Rocky Mountain National Park, and one of his goals is to summit all the Colorado 14ers. Peter enjoys paddle boarding in Horsetooth Reservoir and camping throughout the state. When things get a little colder, he likes skiing and snowshoeing in the surrounding mountains.