Workforce development is focus of funds for equipment
By Patrick L. Kennedy
A BU biomaterials lab is getting a boost thanks to a grant from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC). With $750,000 in funds from the MLSC Workforce Development Capital Grant Program, the College of Engineering is outfitting its Bio-Interface and Technology (BIT) Core Facility with the latest-model FTIR microscope, flow cytometer, plate reader, Seahorse metabolic analyzer, and other cutting-edge equipment.
The hands-on training that students gain with this equipment will strengthen what they’re learning in their biomechanics, biomaterials, and nanotechnology coursework. And ultimately, it will give them the up-to-date skills and experience they’ll need to land internships and then professional roles in fields such as biomedical engineering, drug delivery, and tissue engineering.
“It’s all about building the life sciences workforce, which is the mission of MLSC—and it’s our mission, too,” says Professor Joyce Wong (BME, MSE), who was awarded the funds from MLSC for developing a new internship preparation program called Biomedical Research to Industry Development, Growth, Engineering, and Scale-up (BRIDGES).
To ensure that the program meets student needs, Wong has worked closely with the BU student chapter of the Society for Biomaterials (SFB). SFB student leaders surveyed their members to find out what technical skills students most wanted to learn. Meanwhile, Wong sought input from industry partners to ensure that BRIDGES aligns with current demands in life sciences labs.
Wong is also collaborating with other faculty to align BRIDGES programming with the ENG curriculum and with the ENG Career Development Office. Colleagues in this effort include Senior Lecturer Xin Brown (BME), director of the BIT facility; Professor of the Practice Diane Joseph-McCarthy (BME, MSE), executive director of the Bioengineering Technology & Entrepreneurship Center (BTEC); and Professor Catherine Klapperich (BME, ME, MSE), scientific director of the Design Automation Manufacturing Processes (DAMP) Lab.
The SFB student chapter has also been working with BTEC and the DAMP Lab to host workshops to train undergraduates. Wong says that these workshops, together with curricular instruction and research experiences in the various research laboratories on campus, will best prepare our students to join the Massachusetts workforce.
“The equipment we’re bringing in will support, for example, Intro to Engineering, which is a hands-on, skill-building class,” says Wong. “Students are learning machining, CAD, 3D printing, making circuits. So this program will help the college more broadly, not just BME students. And in fact, the facility will be open to the entire BU community and the Boston-wide external community, on a fee basis.”
Regional collaboration in life sciences research is more important than ever, as traditional sources of funding are beset with uncertainty, while diseases certainly won’t cure themselves. And Massachusetts over the decades has become home to one of the world’s most robust and well-regarded life sciences ecosystems. It’s a position that state leaders hope to preserve, which is why the MLSC, a quasi-public economic development investment agency, is supporting bio research powerhouses such as BU, along with 17 other institutions, for a total of nearly $9.5 million in workforce development capital grants.
“The life sciences are a cornerstone of our economy, and the industry’s continued growth depends on cultivating the next generation of talent across every region of the Commonwealth,” says Mass. Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley. “These grants strengthen the connection between STEM education and industry needs, ensuring Massachusetts remains a leader in life sciences workforce development for years to come.”
“It’s so important to invest in our students and connect them to industry,” says Wong. “And they’ll go on to solve challenges in medical devices, drug development, cancer, women’s health, and more. So ultimately, society benefits.”