The Washington, DC area is full of amazing moms. There are working moms, stay-at-home moms, single moms, moms of multiples, foster moms, adoptive moms, etc. We want to highlight some of those moms like Katherine Lee. Each month we will feature one special mom as the Mom of the Month. Know a fellow amazing local mom here?Nominate them here!
Meet our Mom of the Month: Katherine Lee Photo credit: Paige Ashley Photography
Meet our May Mom of the Month: Katherine Lee
Katherine Lee is a QC Senior Project Manager at MacroGenics with a focus on Stability Program Management. She lives in Vienna with her husband, Jacob, their cockapoo Coco who recently crossed the rainbow bridge after a tough battle with lymphoma (IG: sassycocostrikesagain) and son, Milo (soon to be 3 year old)! Katherine was born and raised in Northern Virginia. She attended Green Hedges and graduated from Madeira (Go Snails!). Katherine graduated from Virginia Tech in 2011 and still has many fond memories from her time at Tech. If you know her, you know she’s obsessed with all things VT. GO HOKIES!
Katherine began her career in Richmond working for PPD and spent 5 years falling in love with the city. Then, she made the hard decision to move back to Northern Virginia. In her current role at MacroGenics, she oversees the Stability Program and manages Quality Control testing to support oncology clinical trials. She’s spent the last 5 years there and feels grateful her daily work gives patients hope when there may not be many other options.
When she’s not working, you can find her working out at F45 Fairfax Circle, planning trips (to Taiwan or Disney, her family’s most recent destinations) or spending time with her friends and fellow moms. Although she prefers to stay at home, she’s always looking for good eats around town!
Here is our Q&A with Katherine Lee
1.For readers who aren’t in your field, how would you describe what you do in simple, everyday language? What originally drew you to the biotech/pharmaceutical field?
I was actually pre-med in college and grew up thinking I wanted to be a doctor. I realized quickly that the school and testing requirements were a big time commitment. Then, I realized that medical school wasn’t for me. After graduation, I got my first job in Richmond working in vaccine research. It was a job where I eventually moved my way onto the scheduling team. This made me realize my organizational and planning skills would help me excel in the Biotech industry. In my current role, I manage the Stability Program at my company. Our stability program ensures our clinical and commercial material is monitored on a regular basis. This ensures quality and safety of the material throughout their intended use for patients on clinical trials.
2.What advice would you give to other moms working in STEM fields who want to grow into leadership roles?
My advice is to find a good mentor, make connections within your field, and be willing to take on new tasks and new roles. even when it might be challenging. I’ve been very lucky in my career to have great managers who have supported my career growth and ambitions. A good mentor doesn’t have to be your manager, it can be anyone you look up to in your office or field. I would also recommend advocating for yourself. Women are told we should be happy with what we have, but we work hard and we deserve just as much as the next person if we’re working hard to get it! Networking is also important, especially in Biotech in this are. The circles are small and you never know who you’ll run into again in the future. Lastly, rise to the challenge! It might be hard in the moment, but you’ll likely learn something new. I have no doubt as a mom, you will conquer it. Moms really do have superpowers!
3.What’s one routine or ritual that helps keep your household running smoothly?
The one thing my husband and I always do before we go to bed each night is reset our house. We get all the dishes done and all the toys put away. Sometimes it’s the last thing we want to do, especially when Milo has been a rough threenager that evening, but we’ve found this helps us prepare for the following day and acts as quite literally, a reset.
 and son, Milo (soon to be 3 year old)! Katherine was born and raised in Northern Virginia. She attended Green Hedges and graduated from Madeira (Go Snails!). Katherine graduated from Virginia Tech and still has many fond memories from her time at Tech. If you know her, you know she's obsessed with all things VT. GO HOKIES!){kind=link}