CBIA/CCSU Fellowships in Biomolecular Sciences Helping to Prevent “Brain Drain” from State


Bioscience has been identified as a key business driver, and Connecticut legislators and corporate executives want to see college grads, especially those with life-sciences degrees, remain in the state.

One way to support that objective is through CCSU’s new Biotechnology Institute. The Biotechnology Institute sponsors on-campus research projects for biomolecular sciences majors that involve bioscience or biotechnical skills. Over the next 18 months, 12 CCSU students will receive fellowships for their research efforts, with funds made possible through a $60,000 grant from the Connecticut Business & Industry Association (CBIA), the state’s largest business organization.

“Central students are less likely to move away,” said Dr. Kathy A. Martin-Troy, professor of biomolecular sciences and director of the Biotechnology Institute. “The 12 CBIA fellowships allow our faculty to better prepare biomolecular sciences majors for positions in Connecticut’s biotechnology companies. We’re excited by these opportunities.”

Fellowship recipients were chosen for their academic abilities and their interest in pursuing careers involving laboratory research. These students are required to share their research findings twice during the grant period at two Biotechnology Forums, where they will make presentations to faculty, students, and representatives from area biotechnology companies. “Our students are already anxious to impress this audience with their completed projects,” said Dr. Thomas R. King, professor of biomolecular sciences and chair of the department. “While these presentations will surely be a great learning experience for the students, they’ll also go far to enhance CCSU’s reputation for life-sciences research training in Connecticut.”

“This fellowship opportunity,” King continued, “expands our ability to provide research training for Connecticut residents, helping us to respond to the legislature’s desire to keep the bioscience and pharmaceutical industries here—and attract even more—by growing a trained workforce in Connecticut.”

Judith Resnick, CBIA director of workforce development and training and deputy director of the association’s Education Foundation, said: “This partnership with Central, as well as the fellowships we sponsor with other universities in the state, underscores the importance of the business community working with our colleges and universities to maintain Connecticut’s world-class workforce. The program helps keep Connecticut’s brightest students in state and allows companies to hire the highly educated and trained workers needed to remain competitive in the growing biotechnology industry.

Caption: Above, eight of the CBIA/CCSU fellowship recipients in a cell culture lab: (from left) Daniel Mori, Thomas Pagliaruli, Sheila Chery, Jeff Damiano, Jason Bannock, Francisco Ramirez, David Magnan, and Shannon Soucy. Not shown: Richard Haughton, Alex Ferrazzoli, Daniel DeCesaris, and Yekaterina Shishkina. Photo credit: Mike Davis