BETA Fellows Program equips educators to prepare future biotech workers

Over the summer, the Biomedical Emerging Technology Applications (BETA) Summer Fellows Industry Program provided six educators with an eight-week opportunity to learn what it is like to work at a biotech company or institution so that they can better prepare their students for this workforce. 

The BETA Fellows program is part of the NSF-funded Advanced Technology Education Skills for Biomedical Emerging Technology Applications (BETA Skills) project, which has a goal to initiate, support and nurture advanced technological education that reflects the convergence of science and technology at the interface of biomedical devices and tissue engineering.

Russ Read, executive director for the National Center for the Biotechnology Workforce (NCBW) at Forsyth Tech in Winston-Salem, has run BETA and other related NCBW profession development programs for almost 20 years and is also a member of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center’s Piedmont Triad Advisory Committee.

“Many instructors have no direct experience in industry, yet they are responsible for preparing students for it,” said Read. “This fellowship provides them with hands-on industry experience that can help make classroom instruction more relevant."

First-hand experience in drug manufacturing

Jarett McLamb, a biotechnology instructor at Wake Tech Community College who worked at Central Carolina Community College at the time of the fellowship, was matched with the Pfizer Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Plant in Sanford. This site focuses on manufacturing vaccine intermediates and drug substances as well as gene therapy drug substances and drug products.

McLamb decided to participate in the program after hearing about it from a colleague who was a Beta fellow at the same site last year. “I had recently switched to teach the course for NC BioWork, a workforce development certificate for job seekers who want to transition into an entry-level position in biopharma,” he said. “Although I had plenty of experience teaching the concepts covered by the course, I wanted to gain more personal experience working in local industry so that I could share that with my students.”

McLamb said \the fellowship gave him a solid understanding of the various departments within a large-scale manufacturing facility and how they collaborate. By shadowing and speaking with managers across different levels and divisions, he gained insights into what employers look for in candidates and which roles are best suited for students completing the BioWork certificate. 

“The Summer BETA Fellows program was a fantastic opportunity to gain meaningful insight and lasting connections within my local biopharma industry,” he said. 

Jeffrey Kane, director of the Applied Molecular Biotechnology Master of Science Program at the University of Massachusetts – Amherst, also spent time at Pfizer's Sanford plant for his fellowship. 

Kane noted that the BETA fellowship provided valuable insight into the full scope of biological production, from operations on the floor to strategic planning and execution. "While the class I teach emphasizes creativity and problem-solving with new approaches, the focus in this facility was on maintaining consistency to ensure product quality," Kane explained. "This gave me a new appreciation for a different way of thinking."

He plans to incorporate some of what he learned into his lectures and turn some of the procedures he learned about into new experiments for his class. “I would recommend this program to any biotech teacher who has not worked in industry,” he said. 

Learning about research translation

Raffaella Diotti, Ph.D., an associate professor at Bronx Community College in New York, was matched to the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM), part of the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem. WFIRM uses bioprinting and other cutting-edge technologies to make replacement tissues and organs and develop cell therapies.

“The lab environment I worked in at WFIRM was quite similar to any academic lab at a research institution, but the approach was more pragmatic,” she said. “The goal was to produce a specific product with the idea that eventually the protocol could be the basis of scaling up for mainstream production.”

Diotti explained that traditional science classes often emphasize basic research, which can disengage students who are more naturally inclined towards more practical skills like troubleshooting and optimization. “I believe it is important to expose the students as early as possible to all the facets of doing science while they are figuring out their future careers,” she said. “My fellowship at WFIRM confirmed this belief and provided me with a better understanding of how to implement relevant activities into different courses.”  

Pratima Kochhar, Ph.D., an assistant professor at Carolina University in Winston-Salem conducted her fellowship in WFIRM’s translational core. This part of WFIRM translates bench research into manufactured products, with a primary focus on scaling up technology. 

“I learned that manufacturing companies prioritize skilled professionals more than R&D, highlighting the importance of hands-on, practical expertise,” she said. “The training was highly informative and provided valuable insights into industry practices, including how research is translated into manufacturable products.” 

Kochhar said that she plans to introduce a specialized course on biomanufacturing, exposing students to concepts such as good documentation practices, standard operating procedures and good manufacturing processes. She hopes to better prepare students for careers in this sector by tailoring this class to meet industry needs. 

Kochhar’s fellowship also included a tour of Novex Innovations, where Aron Kamajaya, Ph.D., biotechnology program director at Los Angeles Pierce College, spent his fellowship. Novex Innovations is a contract development and manufacturing organization that works to facilitate translation of research commercialization. 

Additionally, Evette Mumford, a high school STEM teacher at Texas Academy of Biomedical Sciences conducted her fellowship at Javara Research in Winston-Salem. Javara Research is an integrated research organization that provides point-of-care clinical research access for patients by embedding staff and infrastructure into large healthcare organizations. 

For more information on participating in the 2025 BETA Summer Fellows Industry Program as a fellow or a host, contact Russ Read at [email protected].