Dr. Kizzmekia S. Corbett, TIME magazine’s 2021 Scientist of the Year and lead scientist on the Moderna mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, delivered the keynote address at Norfolk State University’s Research and Innovation Symposium and Exhibition (R.I.S.E.) on April 7, 2022, in Brown Memorial Hall Theater. The event brought together students, faculty, staff and community leaders to celebrate advancements in public health research and innovation.
Corbett sat down with Dr. Felicia Mebane, executive director for the Center for Public Health Initiatives at NSU, to discuss her background, her groundbreaking work at the National Institutes of Health and the future of COVID-19. A scientist at the NIH’s Vaccine Research Center, Corbett led the preclinical trials that informed Phase I clinical trials of the Moderna vaccine and has been a leading voice in addressing vaccine hesitancy in minority communities.
“For a long time, we left the general public on the outside of vaccine development, until it was time to give them their shot,” Corbett said. “And that’s just unacceptable.”