This public health advisor spent over 25 years linking CDC science to states, schools, and communities—helping partners implement evidence-based practices that reduced smoking, promoted physical activity, and strengthened the public health workforce.

This CDC scientist spent more than three decades helping protect children from paralysis. Work advancing PCR testing, genetic sequencing, and global laboratory training informed vaccination strategy in 131 countries and helped drive wild poliovirus to the brink of eradication.

When Illinois released its first comprehensive maternal mortality report, the First Lady of Illinois and the U.S. Surgeon General stood behind it—and major policy changes followed. This CDC maternal and child health epidemiologist helped redesign the state’s maternal death review process from the ground up, translating data into actionable recommendations that expanded postpartum Medicaid coverage and strengthened systems to prevent preventable deaths.

A national STI prevention campaign helped drive major increases in testing among young people—demonstrating the power of research-informed communication. This CDC health communication leader designed and led evidence-based campaigns on HPV, sexual health, Ebola, Zika, and COVID-19, combining behavioral science, strategic partnerships, and rapid translation of data to reach millions and strengthen public health efforts in the U.S. and abroad.

From administrative assistant to a systems innovator. In over 13 years, this CDC professional designed tools used by 1,400 staff, rewrote thousands of webpages in plain language, made complex work run faster, and saved taxpayers millions of dollars.

When a CDC expert appeared calm, clear, and compelling on local television during an outbreak, it wasn’t by accident. Behind the camera was a veteran videographer who had once filmed CEOs, celebrities, and a former president. At CDC, this broadcast specialist used decades of production experience to help scientists connect with the public—turning complex public health guidance into human stories that informed, reassured, and reached millions.

Before there were smartphones, before smallpox was eradicated, before vaccine safety systems were formalized—there were people making decisions in real time. This CDC historian and collections manager worked to preserve those moments. By restoring artifacts, cataloging decades of materials, and building a public oral history archive, this historian helped safeguard the human stories behind the science so future generations could learn from them.

This public health leader built systems that strengthened outbreak response, workforce training, and strategic planning nationwide. During COVID-19, this CDC professional helped streamline emergency grant distribution—processing hundreds of awards in days instead of months—to ensure states, tribes, and communities received critical resources when they needed them most.

When national data revealed that more than one in three girls in a country had experienced sexual violence, governments took notice. This CDC health scientist helped build the Violence Against Children and Youth Surveys from a pilot effort into a rigorous global initiative spanning 24 countries—providing the evidence that drove policy reform, prevention programs, and measurable declines in violence.

From emergency deployments during hurricanes, Zika, and COVID-19 to leading national vaccine equity campaigns and advancing digital accessibility, this CDC public health leader used data and creativity to help communities access clear, inclusive health information. Their work strengthened language access, improved public health messaging, and built agency-wide capacity to communicate about health equity.

From Peace Corps service in South Africa to organizing community health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic and supporting youth overdose prevention coalitions nationwide, this CDC public health professional built a career grounded in service, partnership, and prevention. Their work strengthened community-based responses in some of the country’s hardest hit areas.

What happens when 900 pages of infection control guidance move online without redesign? Confusion. This CDC health communicator applied user experience science to transform complex public health guidance into clear, accessible digital resources—ensuring that clinicians, health departments, and communities could quickly find and use life-saving information.