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Courtney L. Davis Faculty Profile

Courtney L. Davis

Associate Professor of Mathematics
Natural Science Division, Seaver College
RAC 118
310.506.4582

Biography

Dr. Courtney Davis is an Associate Professor of Mathematics at Pepperdine University. She earned her Ph.D. in mathematics with a focus in mathematical biology at the University of Utah. In her research, Dr. Davis mathematically models the immune response against the bacteria Shigella to inform ongoing efforts to design an effective Shigella vaccine. She also collaborates with students and local biologists to mathematically predict how best to protect native Santa Monica Mountain species from invasive crayfish. In addition, Dr. Davis created Pepperdine's Science Modeling Club in 2016 as a venue for students to learn mathematical and scientific modeling in a fun environment.

Education

  • Postdoctoral Research Associate, Center for Scientific Computation and Mathematical Modeling, University of Maryland, College Park, 2010-2012,
  • PhD, Mathematics, University of Utah, 2010
  • MS, Mathematics, University of Utah, 2005
  • BA, Mathematics & BS, Biology, Trinity University, 2003, Summa Cum Laude

 

  • SM Clifton, CL Davis, S Erwin, G Hamerlinck, A Veprauskas, Y Wang, W Zhang, A Bastos, and H Gaff. 2018 (forthcoming). Modeling the Argasid Tick (Ornithodoros moubata) Life Cycle. Understanding Complex Biological Systems with Mathematics. Springer.
  • CL Davis, R Wahid, FR Toapanta, JK Simon, and MB Sztein. 2018. A Clinically Parameterized Mathematical Model of Shigella Immunity to Inform Vaccine Design, PLOS ONE, 13(1): e0189571.
  • WR Milligan, MT Jones, LB Kats, TA Lucas, CL Davis. 2017. Predicting the Effects of Manual Crayfish Removal on California Newt Persistence in Santa Monica Mountain Streams, Ecological Modelling, 352, 139-151.
  • MT Jones, WR Milligan, LB Kats, TL Vandergon, RL Honeycutt, CL Davis, TA Lucas. 2017. A Discrete Stage-Structured Model of California Newt Population Dynamics During a Period of Drought, Journal of Theoretical Biology, 414, 245-253.
  • CL Davis, R Wahid, FR Toapanta, JK Simon, MB Sztein, and D Levy. 2013. Applying Mathematical Tools to Accelerate Vaccine Development: Modeling Shigella Immune Dynamics, PLOS ONE, 8(4), e59465.
  • CL Davis and FR Adler. 2013. Mathematical Models of Memory CD8+ T-Cell Repertoire Dynamics in Response to Viral Infections, Bulletin of Mathematical Biology, 75(3), 491-522.
  • C.L. Davis. Mathematical Models of Memory T-Cell Compartment Size and Repertoire Dynamics. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Utah, Aug 2010.
  • P Blain, C Davis, A Holder, J Silva, and C Vinzant. 2009. Diversity Graphs, in Clustering Challenges in Biological Networks, eds. S. Butenko, W. Chaovalitwongse and P. Pardalos, World Scientific, 129-150.

  • Seaver Fellow, 2016-2017

  • MAA Project NExT Fellow, 2012-2013

  • Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, 2002

  • Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society

  • Member: Society for Mathematical Biology, Mathematical Association of America, Association for Women in Mathematics

Topics

  • Mathematical Biology
  • Mathematical Modeling of Immunity
  • Mathematical Ecology
  • Applied Mathematics
  • Differential Equations and Dynamical Systems

Courses

  • Calculus I, II, & III
  • Business Calculus I & II
  • Linear Algebra
  • Biostatistics
  • Differential Equations
  • Partial Differential Equations