Dr. Katrina Byrd was born and raised in Detroit, MI with her parents and twin sister. Her parents were both teachers and encouraged her to pursue her education.  She completed her BS in Microbiology at Xavier University of Louisiana. During the course of her studies, she developed an interest in public health and decided to pursue a MS in Public Health Microbiology and Emerging Infectious Diseases at The George Washington University School of Public Health. Afterwards, Dr. Byrd attended medical school, at Meharry Medical College, where she discovered her passion and recognized the importance of minority representation in medicine.  Prior to moving to Atlanta, she completed her Internal Medicine/Pediatrics residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin, and Adult and Pediatric Infectious Disease fellowship at Brown University. Growing up in a home of educators has inspired her to share her knowledge and passion for infectious diseases with others.