Biotech teachers get training in Austin

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The biomanufacturing field is a strong industry in Austin. Many startup companies are opening up in our area, and that's fueling demand for biological technicians.

This week Austin Community College is hosting teachers from across Texas.

Most are high school science instructors who are getting up to speed on new curriculum that align with the latest developments in the biotechnology field. The training is “hands on.”

ACC training specialist Leigh Brown says science curriculum must focus not only on DNA but also proteins.

"Most of our drugs are proteins and if students are going into a biotechnology career, they are going to be working with proteins. We put together this program to bring that into the classroom, because it's a concept that's taught at the level DNA is," said Brown.

ACC has received national recognition for its biomanufacturing teaching program.

"We see the teachers at our conferences. They tell us that their students are getting jobs in the industry, and going to community colleges to get further education, which is a key aspect," said biomed instructor Sonia Wallman.

This is the second such program in Texas being offered for teachers. Previous courses were offered to a community college system in Houston.

"This is very important to the Texas economy, to have this type of education available," said Linnea Feltcher, chairwoman of the Biotechnology Department at ACC.

The workshop is funded by the National Science Foundation .

"We'd love to see biotech in Austin take off," she said. "We have Life Technology here in Austin which is fantastic, we'd love to see more of these companies come in and we need a workforce trained to make that happen."