Dr. Max Schroeder earned his bachelor’s degree in Microbiology at Ohio Wesleyan University and Ph.D. in Microbiology and Molecular Genetics from Emory University and holds credentials as a Registered Biosafety Professional (RBP) through ABSA International. He conducted postdoctoral studies as an ORISE fellow at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Schroeder has worked in both academic and government research labs on a variety of collaborative research projects including public health surveillance of antibiotic resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae, molecular mechanism of high-level macrolide resistance in S. pneumoniae, antibiotic mode of action in Acinetobacter baumannii, and molecular pathogenesis of Francisella novicida. He developed inactivation procedures to increase laboratory safety for work with pathogens for downstream molecular assays. While at OWU, he developed a method for quantifying in vitro feather degradation by bacteria, studied the occurrence of human pathogenic (Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus) and feather-degrading microorganisms on the plumage of wild songbirds, and found parrot feather pigments to inhibit bacterial degradation.

Since July 2017, Dr. Schroeder is a Division Safety Manager and, since 2023, Acting Deputy Associate Director at CDC where he serves as the primary safety contact responsible for the implementation and evaluation of sound scientific and safety-related laboratory practices, providing recommendations and guidance to staff across the agency, acting as the liaison between the laboratories, personnel, and customers, and serving on a variety of committees aimed at to improve safety in laboratory operations for branches within his division and center. Dr. Schroeder has authored or co-authored 12 peer-reviewed publications and a similar number of abstract presentations. In support of the COVID-19 Response, he detailed as a Molecular Diagnostics Lab Advisor for the International Task Force Lab Team in 2021 and the Associate Director for Science for the Laboratory and Testing Task Force in 2022. He is a member of ABSA International since 2018 and serves on various committees. He serves as a mentor for the CDC Formal Mentoring Program, Laboratory Leadership Service Risk Assessment Projects, and students from his Alma Mater Ohio Wesleyan University.

Dr. Schroeder is happy to be contacted by Biological Sciences and Public Health Majors, Pre-Med and Pre-Vet majors and first generation students. He looks forward to working with students by:

• Speaking with a student 1:1 on campus
• Mentoring a student
• Assisting OWU Alumni (recent Alumni, or Alumni in transition)

While at OWU, he was involved in Circle K, his student board for his department, and he was a RA.