What is the California Applied Biotechnology Initiative?

The California Applied Biotechnology Centers (CalABC) Initiative is to address the California life sciences industry (including biotechnology) technical workforce, business, economic development, and college support needs. By law, these must fall within the mission of the California Community Colleges Economic and Workforce Development Program.

These needs include, but are not limited to:

• Workforce
  • Career Awareness and Counseling
  • Entry Level Training Programs
  • Up-skilling for re-entry and incumbent workers
  • Workforce Pipeline Development
  • Internships

• Business
  • Professional Development of Incumbent Workers
  • Assistance in finding 'lab-ready' employees
  • Creating connections to local training providers

• Economic Development
  • Partnership with industry organizations
  • BayBio in the San Francisco Bay area
  • Southern California Biomedical Council in the greater Los Angles basin
  • BIOCOM in the greater San Diego region
  • Access of programs to underserved populations

• College Support
  • Curriculum Infrastructure
  • Training for Training Providers
  • Assistance in Industry Connections
  • Industry Advisory Boards
  • Capacity Building through Industry Donations

What is CTE?

The mission of CTE (Career-Technical Education) is to help empower students for effective participation in an international economy as world-class workers and citizens. CTE programs are designed to contribute to the broad educational achievement of students, including basic skills such as reading, writing, and mathematics, as well as to their ability to work independently and as part of a team, think creatively and solve problems, and utilize technology.

Career and technical education is about helping students, workers and lifelong learners of all ages fulfill their working potential. First and foremost it's about high school and college education that provides students with:

• Academic subject matter taught with relevance to the real world, often called contextual learning.
• Employability skills, from job-related skills to workplace ethics.
• Education pathways that help students explore interests and careers in the process of progressing through school.

But career and technical education is also about:

• Second-chance education and training for the unemployed and those seeking to upgrade their employability skills.
• Education to earn additional degrees, especially when related to career advancement.

Corporate training, continuing education, skills upgrades and refresher courses for those already in the workplace. (http://www.acteonline.org/career_tech/)

What is the Mission of the CTE Hub for the Applied Biotechnology Initiative?

The Hub will seek to collect and disseminate best practices in CTE in general and assist in applying them to the Applied Biotechnology related career pathways developed throughout the state.

Specifically the CTE Hub will provide access to up-to-date CTE information, curriculum and mechanisms for developing articulations in order to enable colleges to deliver effective CTE education enabling students' successful transition through career pathways.

Specific programs that interest students in life science careers and enable teachers to develop CTE pathways such as the Amgen Bruce Wallace Program and the Life Sciences Summer Institute are supported.

What is the Life Science Industry?

The life sciences industry emerged in the 1970s, based largely on a new recombinant DNA technique whose details were published in 1973 by Stanley Cohen of Stanford University and Herbert Boyer of the University of California , San Francisco. Recombinant DNA is a method of making proteins, such as human insulin and other therapies, in cultured cells under controlled manufacturing conditions. Boyer went on to co-found Genentech, which today is biotechnology's largest company by market capitalization.

Nationally, life sciences companies employed 180,000 employed in U.S. biotech companies in 2006. (source www.bio.org ) California is home to 48% of all Life Sciences Companies. The state recently passed a 3 billion dollar stem cell initiative that promises to grow this industry well into the future.

San Diego boasts one of the largest concentrations of life science companies in the world, employing nearly 35,000 scientists, researchers, laboratory technicians and business professionals at 500-plus companies. This powerful cluster of companies is an important

San Diego boasts one of the largest concentrations of life science companies in the world, employing nearly 35,000 scientists, researchers, laboratory technicians and business professionals at 500-plus companies. This powerful cluster of companies is an important component of the San Diego economy and offers promising career opportunities for job seekers willing to invest the time to understand the needs and emerging trends within this dynamic field.

Although maybe best known for health and human care products, the umbrella term "Life Science" can be applied to a wide range of diverse businesses, directly or indirectly based on "organic" life processes.

What is the Amgen_Bruce Wallace Lab Program?

Amgen is one of the top three biotechnology companies in the world. Introduced in 1990 and named in memory of Bruce Wallace, one of Amgen's first staff members, the program provides flexible hands-on, inquiry-based experience with the same materials, tools and techniques used by professional scientists. The Amgen-Bruce Wallace program allows teachers to introduce biotechnology by integrating recombinant DNA technology into their science curriculum with all of the equipment, supplies and reagents necessary for the three-week program at no cost to the participants.

What is the Life Sciences Summer Institute?

Life Science Summer Institute Teacher Program

• Curriculum Training (Standards Based) : High school and community college teachers are trained on the AMGEN-Bruce Wallace Biotechnology Laboratory Program at the Biogen-Idec Community Lab. This program could be made available to middle school teachers on an case by case basis.
• Externships: Teachers visit a variety of industry sites for half day 'externships' to view both hard skills and soft skills in practice. Exposed to working professionals in situ these teachers can explore the expectations of educational outcomes in the workplace.
• Curriculum Sharing & Peer Networking: Teachers have the opportunity to share-out "best practices" and network amongst each other.
• Ongoing Support for Curriculum Implementation: Teachers who have no equipment or follow on support receive free supplies, loaner equipment, and staff support to implement the curriculum. Grant funding from AMGEN Foundation.

  Life Sciences Summer Institute Student Program

• One week 'boot camp' pre-service training
• 7-9 week paid internship