On October 27, approximately 70 people attended the Life Sciences Summer Institute (LSSI) graduation and student showcase held at BioLabs San Diego. They had the opportunity to hear about the summer interns’ research at their respective labs and enjoyed savory and sweet offerings provided by gourmet food trucks.
LSSI connects students and teachers with leading San Diego life sciences companies through student internships and teacher externships. From the program’s inception to date, almost 11,000 students received hands-on biotechnology lab training through the Amgen Biotech Experience (ABE)-LSSI Teacher Program. This year, 54 community college and high school students were placed in paid summer internships, and over 60 science teachers received professional development training through biotechnology lab curriculum training, industry visits, and other hands-on lab focused workshops.
“LSSI helped me see that a career in the sciences is possible for me to obtain,” said participant Natalie McCarty. “This internship allowed me to know, for sure, that I want to pursue a career as a cellular biologist.”
The graduation and showcase event was planned to coincide with an open house hosted by BioLabs San Diego, which offers premier co-working space for science startups. Members of the startup community, representatives from BioLabs San Diego, and Andy Hall, SDWP VP and Chief Program Officer, offered opening remarks.
Sponsors of this year’s LSSI include Amgen, BIOCOM, Grossmont College, the McCarthy Family Foundation, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, the San Diego Foundation, the Scripps Research Institute, Southern California Biotechnology Center and UCSD Extension. Complimentary food was offered by Criscito Pizza, Haad Sai Thai, LouZiana Food and Marcel Food Truck.
If you work in the biotechnology industry, there are ways to get involved:
- Invite a biotechnology classroom to a half-day experience to learn about the career opportunities at your company.
- Hire a motivated young adult. Funds are available to support wages, insurances, and liabilities.
- Provide funds to support a student at another company.
Please contact Erika Aranguré at erika@workforce.org to learn more about how to get involved.
For photos of the event, visit the LSSI Facebook page.
Applications for the 2017 LSSI cohort opens in January.