These stories are based on confidential interviews conducted as part of the CDC Listening Project. Participants review and approve written summaries describing their work, their contributions, and the circumstances surrounding their separation. Stories are published without names or identifying details.
Improving Health Communication Here and Abroad
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.
Preserving and Cataloging CDC’s Artifacts and Key Memories
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.
Building Capacity to Detect Health Threats and Manage a Strategic Response
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.
Data and Creativity Help Meet Audiences Where They Are
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 to Organizing Community Health Workers During Covid
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.