Dr. Kathy Earnest-Koons is a Senior Lecturer Emerita from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the College of Veterinary Medicine. She grew up in Norfolk, VA and attended Lynchburg College where she received a B.A. in English. She received her D.V.M. from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine and then completed a Master's degree and a residency in Laboratory Animal Medicine at the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center at Pennsylvania State University.

Dr. Earnest-Koons came to Cornell to do a second residency in Veterinary Pathology. When she was completing her residency, the Veterinary College was just embarking on a new curriculum, which featured small group, problem-based learning. She joined the faculty and was part of the team that developed the new curriculum. She served as the course support specialist for Foundation Course IV--Host, Agent and Defense, which is a team-taught multidisciplinary 12-credit core course for 21 years. This course encompasses eight disciplines including pathology, microbiology and immunology. During the spring semester she taught an elective course on swine infectious diseases.

In addition to her teaching duties, Dr. E-K served as the faculty advisor for several student clubs. She enjoyed working with the veterinary students and getting to know them outside the classroom. She looks forward to meeting and interacting with many of the residents here at the Alice Cook House at dinner, brunch or outside events.

Dr. E-K lives in the Fall Creek neighborhood of Ithaca in a 1916mission-style bungalow with her husband, Phil Koons, and their cat, Archie. She enjoys reading, birding, fishing, camping, cats, travelling, acting, bowling, the theatre and being outdoors.