Mass. Biotechnology Council and MassBioEd Announce $9M Major Public/Private Partnership to Advance Science Education in the State

Monday April 11, 9:12 am ET
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- Bioteach Program Has Already Raised $3.3m ---
- Major Corporate Sponsorship Provided by Genzyme Corporation and Serono --
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Today the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council (MBC) and MassBioEd, the MBC's education foundation, announced the launch of BioTeach, a $9 million public/private partnership to provide the resources to enable every public high school in Massachusetts to teach biotechnology by 2010. BioTeach builds on the MBC's nine years of success with its Science Lab Awards program, adding biotechnology science and career components into the core biology curriculum of public schools in Massachusetts.

"Massachusetts would not be the world center of life science research that it is today without the talented minds that fill the laboratories of our companies, academic institutions, and hospitals," said MBC President Thomas Finneran. "There is no better way to engage a new generation of scientists than by bringing cutting-edge biotechnology into the classroom. Through this partnership, the MBC is expanding its historic commitment to science education in Massachusetts."
To date, the BioTeach program has received generous support from a number of MBC member companies, including commitments of $250,000 from Genzyme Corporation and $100,000 from Serono, the leading corporate sponsors, as well as a $1.4M grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. Such corporate and government financial assistance is critical to the success of the BioTeach program. In addition, the MBC plans to raise $100,000 annually through the annual MBC Golf Classic. MassBioEd is also partnering for BioTeach with local, private and public organizations listed below.

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