Abstract
In direct address to this charge, Assistant Professor Christine M. Ingersoll, Ph.D., is leading her undergraduate students “outside the academic box” and into the “real world” thanks to support from Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development. “It was a classic case of professional networking paying-off in tangible results,” says Ingersoll. “When I learned that they (Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development) bought new equipment and had a ‘spare’ Benchmate (Zymark Benchmate II Workstation) available, I jumped at the opportunity. I knew it would enable a major step forward for our program and our students.”
And it has. In terms of tangibles, one student involved in the automation lab believes the experience gave her an important professional edge, and helped her land a job with a major pharmaceutical company. In addition, Ingersoll herself is delighted by the increased interest and enthusiasm she sees in her students. “It's very rewarding,” she says, “and it's clear they're getting so much more out of their lab experience. It's teaching them to think beyond the science and into the practicalities of industry.”
And the enthusiasm is contagious. As the Chemistry Department continues to plan the next automation project for its analytical lab, students conducting interdisciplinary research at Muhlenberg and faculty from other nearby colleges are expressing interest in automating projects of their own. “The greatest challenge,” says Ingersoll, “is budget. Our program is well funded, but not to the extent that we could have afforded to invest in robotics, and I think it's safe to say the same is true for others.”
The momentum realized by the Chemistry Department at Muhlenberg College is just one example of how partnerships between industry and academia can create important value, value that can be multi-dimensional. “When academia and industry collaborate to exchange information, ideas and answers,” says Ingersoll, “industry can look forward to seeing better educated, better prepared job candidates. In a way, it can be considered workforce training. It will ensure that the kind of talent they need will be available.”
Muhlenberg's Haas College Center.
“That's exactly right,” says Adam M. Fermier, Ph.D., Principal Scientist for Drug Evaluation - New Technologies at Johnson & Johnson Research and Development. “Part of the credo that guides the actions of J&J employees encourages us to increase quality and reduce costs to customers. One opportunity for us to do this is through automation, and finding informed and prepared scientists to bring on board can sometimes be quite challenging. Helping to mentor future scientists will help J&J and others create quality at reduced costs to customers. Plus, working with Christine and her students on this project has been quite rewarding and fun.”
“Let's be honest,” Fermier adds, “the system that we donated was 10 years old, the students were still in elementary school when J&J purchased it, but while it was no longer useful for us, it still offered plenty to the students. And the cool thing about these young scientists is they are very quick with computers, so it doesn't take them long to pick things up.”
“We're always delighted to hear stories like these,” says E. Kevin Hrusovsky, President and Chief Executive Officer of Zymark Corporation, maker of the Benchmate II Workstation. “Zymark has always partnered with selected local schools, providing equipment and course work for robotics and life sciences classrooms. In addition we support some robotic competition teams. One high school team actually builds its robots in our facility and competes on a national scale. They get to spend quality time with our engineers and scientists, and we get to see the direct payoff of our investment in the academic development and passion that the experience creates in the students.”
Hrusovsky, who is also a member of the ALA Board of Directors, adds “We firmly believe that cooperative efforts between industry and academia have always played a vital role in helping drive progress in evolving fields. Getting more real world in the world of theory is a great platitude toward which we should all strive.”
ALA Chief Administrative Officer Greg Dummer, CAE, agrees with these assessments and notes that “ALA has always recognized the value of partnership between industry and academia. Academic professionals have always been encouraged to attend ALA events, which offer appropriately scaled registration fees and other valued-based advantages. Their participation has been much appreciated and we hope to see more of it in the future.”
Muhlenberg College is located 55 miles north of Philadelphia and 90 miles west of New York City in Allentown, PA. Founded in 1848, its academic emphasis is on liberal arts and pre-professional students. 2,100 students attend “Berg” − 43 percent of them are men and 57 percent of them are women.