Arlington, VA (May 12, 2008) – Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, the San Francisco Bay Area’s second-largest biotechnology employer, and the Biotechnology Institute, the national biotechnology education organization, will launch an intensive program this spring to teach and inspire local young people to consider careers in science and technology. The two-pronged program will focus on students from less advantaged communities.
“We are taking a two-track approach to addressing critical pressure points, the high school and graduate level, where students must be inspired about science, particularly biotechnology, and its immense potential for solving human health, food and environmental problems,” says Paul A. Hanle, president of the Biotechnology Institute.
“Bayer shares with the Biotechnology Institute a recognition that the biotechnology industry is a major force for the future—economically, and through improving people’s lives,” noted Joerg Heidrich, Bayer’s senior vice president and global head of biotech product supply. “As an industry leader Bayer is committed to forging new generations of talented, imaginative professionals—and to providing concrete encouragement to all students, especially those traditionally underrepresented in the sciences, to train for jobs in this exciting field.”
The partnership will establish the “Bayer Minority Fellows Program,” a mentoring program pairing Bayer scientists and executives with ten top-quality graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in life sciences disciplines, particularly those with an interest in research and development and manufacturing. Bayer Minority Fellows will be selected from universities with proximity to Bayer’s West Coast facilities including Washington State, northern California, and San Diego.
With Bayer experts to guide them, Fellows will explore careers in the biotechnology industry, particularly research and development and biomanufacturing. Fellows will undergo rigorous professional development training in areas such as emerging technologies and industrial entrepreneurship. They will also receive coaching in career-building skills, including interviewing techniques and resume writing.
The program, modeled after the Institute’s national Minority Fellows Program, will kick off with a two-day training session, to be held May 21-23, 2008, at Bayer’s global biotech headquarters in Berkeley, CA. The initial meeting will be followed with ongoing interactions facilitated over subsequent months in order to strengthen Mentor-Fellow relationships.
The Bayer/Biotechnology Institute partnership also includes a two-day teacher professional development session on biotechnology for 20 middle and high school teachers from East Bay schools, particularly those in lower-income communities. The session, to be held at Bayer in November, will again tap the expertise of Bayer scientists, who will serve as subject matter experts and mentors.
The partnership with the Biotechnology Institute is an important addition to Bayer’s portfolio of science education initiatives. On the West Coast Bayer founded the award-winning Biotechnology Partners program in 1992 as a way to train disadvantaged local high school and community college students for careers in the booming industry. Other initiatives include Making Science Make Sense, the company’s national program that brings scientists into public schools for hands-on science training, and programs ranging from elementary school science curriculum development to fellowships for minority graduate and post-doctoral students.
About the Biotechnology Institute
The Biotechnology Institute is an independent, national nonprofit organization dedicated to education about the present and future impact of biotechnology. Its mission is to engage, excite and educate the public, particularly students and teachers, about biotechnology and its immense potential for solving human health, food and environmental problems. For more information, visitwww.biotechinstitute.org.
About Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals
Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals is the U.S.-based pharmaceuticals unit of Bayer HealthCare LLC, a division of Bayer AG. One of the world’s leading, innovative companies in the healthcare and medical products industry, Bayer HealthCare combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Consumer Care, Diabetes Care, and Pharmaceuticals divisions. In the U.S., Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals comprises the following business units: Women’s Healthcare, Diagnostic Imaging, Specialized Therapeutics, Hematology/Cardiology and Oncology. The company’s aim is to discover and manufacture products that will improve human health worldwide by diagnosing, preventing and treating diseases.
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