Dr. Christina Arieta has been recognized by the College of Natural Sciences and is the recipient of the CNS Outstanding Young Alumni Award. Dr. Arieta earned her Bachelor’s of Microbiology (2009) and her Doctorate of Animal Biotechnology & Biomedical Sciences (2014) from UMass Amherst. She is currently the Senior Director of Molecular Immunology at BioNTech US Inc. and provides scientific leadership for their next-generation COVID-19 vaccine program, among other aspects of the company's vaccine program.