Skill Enhancement

Skills for Our Unique Community Needs

Developing a bioscience center of excellence requires more than buildings and equipment, it necessitates a skilled workforce. Advanced educational opportunities must be created through collaboration with the bioscience industry and the schools of higher education. Identification of the industry requirements today, tomorrow and into the next decade are key elements in designing curriculum to meet the growing needs of the bioscience community.

The Memphis Bioworks® Foundation works to identify, evaluate and make recommendations in an effort to meet the skills necessary to be a successful employee in the biosciences. Working directly with educational institutions, the Foundation has focused on improving and advancing the curriculum for students seeking positions in the industry. Examples of the programs include:

Masters Degree in Engineering Management at Christian Brothers University
IT Graduate Engineering Certificate at Christian Brothers University
Engineering and Sciences Conference at Christian Brothers University
2 year bioengineering program at Southwest Tennessee Community College
Upgraded bioengineering program at The University of Memphis
Bioscience seminars at The University of Memphis FedEx Institute of Technology
Musculoskeletal New Ventures Conference
Memphis Bio-Imaging Symposium
Logistics program at the University of Memphis FedEx Institute

The Foundation has been instrumental in starting Tennessee’s first charter school the Memphis Academy of Science and Engineering (MASE). With more than 800 students enrolled in the program, the school expects to graduate its first class in May, 2009, and have 100 percent of the students be accepted by a college program.