About the Biotech Initiative

Connecting the biotech industry with a well-trained operational biotech workforce through the largest educational system in the world, the California Community Colleges.

California is the home to the majority of the nation’s biotechnology companies. The number of Californians currently employed in the biotechnology field is in excess of 100,000 (May 2002), and this number will continue to grow. The revenue generated in California by biotechnology over $12 billion (May 2002 - figures vary).

The Statewide Biological Technologies Initiative, led by the six centers and partnering with biotechnology firms, secondary schools, universities, public agencies and associations, lay the groundwork for comprehensive educational programs to prepare the workforce for new jobs. The Biological Technologies Initiative's facilitates and enables improved community college effectiveness in supporting biotechnology-related economic development in California.

Biotechnology training and education in the California Community Colleges started before the Biotech Initiative was officially birthed in 1997. Please see "Colleges Offering Biotechnology" for details.

Biotechnology was identified as one of ten important strategic industry clusters in California for the Economic & Workforce Development Program, the official branch of the California Community College system that fulfills Education Code 88500 (and following sections) as one of three missions of the California Community Colleges. In 1996, two state biotechnology centers began operation: the Southern and the Northern California Biotechnology Centers. MiraCosta College in Oceanside hosted the grant for the Southern Center (SCBC) for four years (that grant is now held by San Diego City College); and City College San Francisco hosted the grant for the Northern Center (NCBC).

In 1997, a third center was added: the Central Coast Biotechnology Center (CCBC), located at Ventura College, successful candidate for the grant for this center. In 1998, three further centers started operations: San Joaquin Biotechnology Center (SJBC) at the host college, Bakersfield College; North Valley and Mountain Biotechnology Center (NVMBC) hosted by American River College in Sacramento; while Pasadena City College hosted the Los Angeles-Orange County Biotechnology Center (LAOCBC).

Each of the six centers has a center director: each college interprets the duties of the center director differently, or accommodates the center director's faculty position into the milieu. Each grant is funded at $178,875. Please see the Grants Information, CCCCO for details.

A core Statewide Applied Biological Technologies Initiative Committee meets three or four times per year. An extended Statewide Committee consists of the core committee and each of the Center's Advisory Committees. (Click here for minutes of the Core Committee)

Each center has a different number of total California Community Colleges in its region, and a lesser number that are active in biotechnology in some way. Please see the "Colleges" section for detail on the colleges, and please see the maps on this Web site for colleges involved with biotechnology in some way.

The Initiative also has a state director funded by a grant for $152,500. This grant is hosted by Ventura College, although the state director travels a great deal around the state and sometimes out of state with her duties. The total funding for the Applied Biological Technologies Initiative is $1,225,750.