Shawnee, KS - Strengthening its commitment to advancing the biopharmaceutical manufacturing industry with a robust pipeline of diverse talent, BioKansas will enhance the training experience of 15 students of African American/Black, Latinx, or Indigenous descent through a grant from the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL). The NIIMBL eXperience @BioKansas is an exclusive in-person, all-expenses-paid immersion program designed to introduce students to biopharmaceutical careers through hands-on training and personal interactions.

“We’re fortunate to partner with NIIMBL to provide this unique opportunity to immerse students in the scientific ecosystem while helping them expand their understanding of the biopharmaceutical manufacturing industry. We anticipate these experiences will help students establish realistic expectations of career opportunities, which will lead to greater job satisfaction, lower attrition, and the ability for them to more efficiently advance through their careers,” said Sonia Hall, President & CEO of BioKansas.  

This effort, developed in partnership with NIIMBL, provides students with cutting-edge industry-driven technical skills training, professional development programming that prepares them to contribute to culturally diverse teams and organizations, multiple mentors, exposure to the breadth of career opportunities available, and an understanding of how they qualify for them, and meaningful opportunities to engage with industry professionals with shared life histories and experiences.  

The NIIMBL eXperience @BioKansas program will also leverage micro-credentialing, led by the Bioscience Core Skills Institute. All participants will finish their time in Kansas City at Innovation Festival, an annual regional convergence of music and tech, which brings students from around the country and provides a platform for elevating the advancements of the biopharmaceutical industry. 

This project was developed with an award from the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL) and financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (70NANB21H086).

For those interested in applying for the NIIMBL eXperience program, please click here. 

About BioKansas: BioKansas is a non-profit organization whose mission is to lead the effort of supporting and growing Kansas’ bioscience ecosystem including bioscience research, commercialization, training, and business development. Learn more at www.biokansas.org.