Haynes was one of the eight women celebrated at a virtual ceremony in late May. The Innovator in STEM is “a leader who identifies, supports, and promotes innovative practices that address important challenges in expanding access to quality STEM education,” according to the magazine. Award nominations came from scientists and health professionals across the country.

“I am honored to receive this year’s Women of COLOR STEM Achievement Award for innovation in STEM,” Haynes said in her acceptance remarks. “Thank you to the award committee for this great opportunity.”

Haynes is an assistant professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University, where she uses engineering and molecular biology to design and build proteins that target and control cancer cells. She’s especially focused on triple-negative breast cancer, which disproportionately affects Black women.

Haynes also has created the AfroBiotech Conference to showcase the innovation, contributions, and leadership of the diverse engineering community and to inspire the next generation of students and scholars. In its two years, Haynes said the conference has highlighted innovations from more than 200 young and established Black scientists.

“Beyond my own research, I hope to grow a biotech community here in the Southeast that offers more lucrative and flexible opportunities to our marginalized community,” she said.