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40 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | APRIL 2021 Introducing the 34-year-old Black woman scientist who developed the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. A 34 year-old doctor named Kizzmekia "Kizzy" Shanta Corbett is an American viral immunologist at the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIAID NIH) in Bethesda, Md. Appointed to the VRC in 2014, she is currently the scientific lead of the VRC's Coronavirus Team. In December 2020, the Institute's Director Dr. Anthony Fauci said, "Kizzy is an African American scientist who is at the forefront of the development of the vaccine." Kizzmekia Corbett was born on January 26, 1986, in Hurdle Mills, N.C. She grew up in Hillsborough, N.C. among a large family of step-siblings and foster siblings. Kizzy's fourth grade teacher, Myrtis Bradsher at Oak Lane Elementary School, recalls recognizing Corbett's talent at an early age and encouraging Kizzy's mother to place her in advanced classes. "She was the best student in my 30 years of teaching." In 2004, Kizzy graduated from Orange High School in Hillsborough, N.C. While in high school, Corbett realized that she wanted to pursue a scientific career, and spent her summers working in various research laboratories through a program called Project SEED. In 2008, she received a B.S. in biological sciences and sociology from the University of Maryland, as a student in the Meyerhoff Scholars Program. In 2014, Corbett received a Ph.D in microbiology and immunology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At the onset of the pandemic, Corbett started working on a vaccine to protect people from COVID-19. To manufacture and test the vaccine, Corbett's team partnered with Moderna, a biotechnology company. Corbett's work afforded her the opportunity to be a part of the National Institutes of Health team that welcomed President Donald Trump to the Dale and Betty Bumpers Vaccine Research Center in March 2020. Corbett has worked to build trust with the vaccine hesitant populations. She presented education about the COVID-19 vaccine development to Black Health Matters in October 2020 after a study released by the NAACP revealed only 14 percent of Black Americans believe the COVID-19 vaccine is safe. NIAID Director Dr. Fauci stated in a webinar with the National Urban League, "…The vaccine that you're going to be taking was developed by an African American woman." Corbett regularly shares information on Twitter and takes part in programs to inspire youth in underserved communities. "Dr. Barney Graham had the forethought to allow me to work with a team on a virus that essentially nobody cared about," said Dr. Corbett. ~ Regina Thomas, infotoaacc@ gmail.com African American Cultural Club Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett talks to President Donald Trump as he tours the Viral Pathogenesis Laboratory at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland in March 2020 Dr. Corbett and her boss Dr. Barney Graham 34-year-old Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett