2012 MassBioEd Innovative School of the Year – Norton High School

Posted under 2012 BIO International Convention, BIO International Convention, Blog, Companies, Diagnostics, education, Events, Funding, massachusetts, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, Pharmaceuticals, Startups, STEM Education, Universities, Videos by biotechnow@bio.org (Biotechnology Industry Organization)

Massachusetts is home to the full ecosystem of life sciences—including our world class academic institutions and medical centers, a vibrant venture capital community, hundreds of biotech companies of all sizes, contract research and manufacturing organizations, and service organizations supporting the industry.

It is no wonder then that eleven years ago MassBio established the Massachusetts Biotechnology Foundation to promote biotechnology education and workforce development programs. Each year, the Foundation awards the Innovative School of the Year to highlight and honor a Massachusetts high school for distinguishing itself through exemplary innovative biotechnology educational programming.

This year, MassBioEd granted the award to Norton High School in Norton, MA. Since 2007, Norton High School has worked with MassBioEd in the BioTeach program. The school has successfully utilized their BioTeach grant to expand biotechnology courses to all of their students and provide elective courses in biotech, forensics and anatomy & physiology. Each year, over 175 students are provided instruction in biotechnology based lab experiences, culminating in a research project that focuses on life sciences careers.

Other highlights of the innovative Norton High program include:

• Presentations by former students. This year presentations were made by former students currently studying STEM majors at MIT and Tufts.
• Norton teachers acting as mentors to former graduates. Many former students are now enrolled in STEM majors at the local colleges.
• Norton offering a Biotechnology elective course. Now in its fourth year, competition is high for seats in both the Honors Level and College Preparatory/Main Stream Level Biotechnology classes.
• Curriculum including topics such as Bioethics, Forensics, and Biotechnology. Students assist in laboratory preparation of materials, serve as lab assistants, present and demonstrate laboratory skills to the Norton School Committee and complete a final project which includes researching biotechnology companies and colleges that offer biotechnology majors.
• Student internships. This year the Science department’s student internship was awarded to a Biotechnology student who is working on developing new labs and activities with the teacher for this course.  This student will also be focusing on a STEM major in college in the fall.
• Actively participating in MassBioEd’s Life Science Career Development Initiative. Highlights included a “college hop” field trip bringing students to colleges that offer biotechnology programs/ majors, regular presentations by career professionals in the industry, students and teachers attending  workshops and job shadows at local universities and biotechnology companies and one-third of students in the first two cohorts enrolling in STEM majors in college.

Speaking of education, the annual International BioGENEius Challenge will take place June 18th at the 2012 BIO International Convention in Boston, MA. The International BioGENEius Challenge is the premier competition for high school students that recognized outstanding research in biotechnology. Finalists will showcase their talent and research to a prestigious panel of expert biotech judges and will display their projects to approximately 15,000 Convention participants.

Dr. Jill Biden Kicks-Off Community College to Career Bus Tour

Posted under Biden, Blog, Companies, Diagnostics, education, Events, Funding, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, Pharmaceuticals, Startups, STEM Education, Universities, Videos by biotechnow@bio.org (Biotechnology Industry Organization)

Dr. Jill Biden and U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis will embark on a five-state “Community College to Career” bus tour to highlight innovative industry partnerships this week. The tour will begin on February 22 with a visit at Columbus State Community College before continuing to DG Medical.

At DG Medical, Dr. Biden and Secretary Solis will join BioOhio and Sinclair Community College officials to see first-hand the impact of a U.S. Department of Labor grant-funded biomedical training program led by BioOhio.

Launched in 2010, the three-year Ohio Bioworkforce Training Partnership aims to deliver training to 660 displaced or underemployed workers in declining industries for careers in Ohio’s growing bioscience industry. In addition, 40 incumbent workers will receive more advanced training to move into higher level jobs. Several DG Medical employees have completed training at Sinclair Community College, one of the program’s six college partners.

Last week, President Obama announced a new $8 billion Community College to Career Fund co-administered by the Department of Labor and Department of Education to forge new partnerships between community colleges and businesses to train two million workers with skills that will lead directly to jobs.

Dr. Biden, a community college instructor for 18 years, and Secretary Solis, who began her career in public service as a community college trustee, will highlight the unique role community colleges can play in creating a flexible, highly-skilled 21st-century workforce to help businesses meet the specific emerging needs in their regions.

Special thanks to my friends at BioOhio for the heads-up and press release on this public awareness initative.

Why Are Women Underrepresented in Scientific Fields?

Posted under Blog, Companies, Diagnostics, Funding, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, Pharmaceuticals, Public Policy, Startups, STEM Education, Universities, Videos, women in biotechnology by biotechnow@bio.org (Biotechnology Industry Organization)

Last week, I wrote about the systemic failure of public schools to prepare kids for science and math focused jobs. These aren’t just theoretical jobs of tomorrow, they are well-paid positions that American employers literally can’t fill fast enough.

Despite this nation’s poor international ranking in both math and science educational achievement, tech focused jobs in the U.S. have grown at three times the normal pace through this past decade. This trend is expected to amplify through the foreseeable future.

Looking specifically at the people who hold these science and tech jobs, the gender gap is unmistakable. Men outnumber women three-to-one. Interestingly, a nationwide survey of 1,000 teen girls from the Girl Scout Research Institute shows that a lack of interest in science isn’t the problem.

There is a long-standing biased perception that girls don’t perform as well in math and science as boys. However, the American Association of University Women has shown that high school girls and boys perform equally well in math and science.

If this is the case, why aren’t girls prioritizing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields when thinking about their future careers? I suspect this is another example of how public school systems, and universities for that matter, are not adequately preparing students for the requirements of today’s workplace.

Here are some interesting findings from a recently released report, entitled Generation STEM: What Girls Say About Science, Technology, Engineering and Math:

• Overall, a majority of girls find STEM fields interesting: 74 percent of teen girls are interested in the fields of STEM and in STEM subjects.
• Girls are interested in the process of learning, asking questions, and problem solving: 88 percent of girls like to understand how things work; 85 percent like puzzles and solving problems; and 83 percent like doing hands-on science projects.
• Girls interested in STEM are high achievers who have supportive adult networks and are exposed to STEM fields.
• Although interest in STEM is high, few girls consider it their number-one career choice, given competing opportunities and interests: 81 percent of girls are interested in pursuing STEM careers, but only 13 percent say it is their first choice.

Science Education in Deep Trouble; Report Shows Sad State of Affairs

Posted under Blog, Companies, Diagnostics, education, Funding, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, Pharmaceuticals, Public Policy, Startups, states, STEM Education, teachers, Universities, Videos by biotechnow@bio.org (Biotechnology Industry Organization)

American business leaders rue the lack of home-grown skilled workers. This is a problem governors and legislators have been acknowledging for years. However, a recent report from The Thomas B. Fordham Institute indicates that many states continue to ignore the need for strong science curriculums as a means of producing workers for an increasingly high-tech economy.

This quote says it all:

“American science performance is lagging as the economy becomes increasingly high tech, but our current science standards are doing little to solve the problem. Reviewers evaluated science standards for every state for this report and their findings were deeply troubling: The majority of states earned Ds or Fs for their standards in this crucial subject, with only six jurisdictions receiving As.”

Here’s another quote from the report that cuts right to the chase:

“The results of this rigorous analysis paint a fresh—but still bleak—picture. A majority of the states’ standards remain mediocre to awful. In fact, the average grade across all states is—once again—a thoroughly undistinguished C. (In fact, it’s a low C.) In twenty-seven jurisdictions, the science standards earn a D or below.”

If you have an hour and a half to kill it would be worthwhile to watch this presentation of the report’s findings:

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