Meet Maryam Abdul-Kareem

Introduction

From a nasty case of strep throat to moving to Senegal as a child, Maryam Abdul-Kareem’s life has been defined by persistence and perspective. Stricken with a bout of strep as an 8-year-old living in a primarily homeopathic household, Maryam was fascinated by the seemingly miraculous powers of the antibiotic prescribed to her. She decided then and there that she wanted to be a doctor. Her determination only grew stronger when her family moved to Senegal to study and help develop schools and medical clinics in a small village.?

During her undergraduate years at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Maryam’s attention turned toward developing medicines rather than practicing medicine. She attended Johns Hopkins for graduate school, worked a few years in product development, and eventually went on to earn a Juris Doctor at Georgetown Law—combining her passion for public health with public policy.?

Q: From the ages of 9 to 14 you lived in the West African country of Senegal, immersed with local populations. How do you think that experience shaped you as a person today?

My parents always stressed the importance of community. When a Senegalese friend of theirs—who studied in the U.S.—extended an invitation to move the family to Senegal, they happily accepted. My upbringing and early childhood experience living abroad instilled in me a curiosity about people, their stories, and their backgrounds. I believe there’s always more to people than meets the eye, that everyone has an impressive, unique, or fascinating story to tell. It also opened my eyes to issues of medical equity and accessibility. I think I came away from that experience with a humility that I might not have had otherwise. And, I’m still active in the Senegalese-American community and feel as if I have an unofficial second citizenship!?

Q: You have a fascinating background! Is there anything else that might surprise people about you?

Probably a lot! But what often surprises people about me is that I am a fourth generation Aggie from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (N.C. A&T), the largest historically black university in the country. There is a common misperception that many people of color are first-generation college students or first-gen professionals, but my family has a legacy of academic leadership.

In fact, my grandfather, Dr. Burleigh C. Webb, was dean of N.C. A&T’s then School of Agriculture for over 30 years. My grandmother and his wife, Dr. Alfreda Johnson Webb, was the first Black woman licensed to practice veterinary medicine in the United States, as well as a professor of biology. (She was also the first African-American woman in the North Carolina General Assembly.) My daughter is now fifth-generation at N.C. A&T studying economics and I couldn’t be prouder that she is carrying on the tradition.

Q: If you could use only one word to describe yourself, what would it be?

Determined. I've never had a lot of doubt about the fact that I was going to accomplish the things that I set out to accomplish. I’m a very ambitious person. I knew the path wouldn’t be easy and that the trajectory might change, but I always knew that I would be successful academically and professionally. My family always modeled success and resilience.?

Q: You recently left a larger pharmaceutical company to work for Kinnate? What attracted you to the company?

I’ve had a very rewarding career, but I was feeling a strong sense of a needing to start a new chapter—both in terms of the type of company I was working for and the type of legal work I was doing. I was really attracted by Kinnate’s stage of growth; I was excited to be a part of building something almost from the ground up. I liked the newness of the rapidly growing company and the opportunity to be there for so many important milestones to come. I had interviewed with some companies that were similar in size and culture to my former employer, but with Kinnate I just felt a strong sense of “this is it.”

Q: What is your favorite part of your job?

I would say the company culture. Kinnate is a collection of very well-credentialed and passionate people who roll up their sleeves, but who don't take themselves too seriously. However, Kinnate is serious about creating an inclusive culture that is welcoming of people from all backgrounds and ensuring that people are thriving. It's a very diverse company. The company is growing rapidly and there's a lot of hiring going on, but the collaborative nature of the community is well-preserved.

Q: What’s been the greatest learning experience of your career thus far?

Your best chance of success is being who you are and not assimilating into an environment that isn't necessarily reflective of who you are. That’s a lesson I learned over a number of years and one that I frequently try to pass on to younger people. I think that people from diverse backgrounds often feel like they need to be a different person in the professional environment. The sooner they can bridge the gap between who they are in life and who they are at work, the better off and more successful they're going to be.

Q: What are your personal passions, any interesting hobbies?

I love music. Whenever I’m alone in the office, there’s bound to be music playing. Although I like all kinds of genres, I love hip hop in particular. I have been known to use Jay-Z quotes quite often. One of the biggest things that I’ve missed during the pandemic is attending live concerts and events.

I’ve also been practicing different styles of yoga for over 10 years. My favorite is Baron Baptiste Power Yoga and I hope to get certified in the future. In a bit of wonderful irony, there is a Baptiste Power Yoga studio in the same building as Kinnate’s San Francisco office.

Q: What does Kinnate’s #PatientsAreWaiting mean to you?

What I love about Kinnate and our science is that it's precision medicine, targeted to specific points in the pathway of certain cancers that we hope will allow patients to be treated quickly. My paternal grandmother died of breast cancer, so I understand how cancer patients are almost suspended in time trying to figure out what comes next; every day after a cancer diagnosis can feel like living in dog years.?

It’s also important to note that when we say #PatientsAreWaiting, we are talking about the patients and the communities that support them—their family members, their friends, and loved ones. I’m really excited about our science and opportunity to get the right treatments to patients who need them.