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Doing Business in Connecticut 2018

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24 | DOING BUSINESS IN CONNECTICUT | 2018 2018 | DOING BUSINESS IN CONNECTICUT | 24 science and technology processes, using a mix of sensors, online information and analytics to automatically adjust for the greatest efficiency or react to real-time problems. CPS also has applications in health, transportation, smart buildings, renewable energy, agriculture and more. Maric said the UTC Institute for Advanced Systems Engineering has become a hub for world-class research. "It's a truly holistic approach to innovation." In other research partnerships, Boehringer Ingelheim Corp. funds a state-of-the-art teaching lab at UConn's School of Pharmacy and endows pharmacy faculty chairs at UConn and UConn Health; and Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. has sponsored research with three UConn faculty focused on rare disease and currently sponsors two graduate student fellowships to train future rare-disease scientists. UConn also partners with smaller companies, Maric noted, including Thetis Pharmaceuticals, a Branford-based start-up biotech company. The company and UConn are working together to develop a better treatment for inflammatory bowel syndrome, and a recent UConn Health doctor and graduate is director of research and development at Thetis, she said. Elsewhere in the state, faculty and student researchers at Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven also see the benefits of partnering with industry. At Southern, the three-year-old Bioscience Academic and Career Pathway initiative (BioPath) connects on-campus research with area bioscience companies. It's a partnership among Southern, the City of New Haven and the business community that aims to create and sustain a pipeline of skilled bioscience workers. "Workforce development is a key piece," said Christine Broadbridge, dean of Southern's School of Graduate Studies, Research and Innovation. "Students that graduate from Southern are really those that stay in the state. This experience really helps them to be the best prepared." Through the initiative, the university continually consults with bioscience companies – including those represented on the program's advisory board – to frame its curriculum around businesses' workforce needs, said Broadbridge. Company leaders also advise the school on what equipment students should be learning on to gain employable skills. "They [business leaders] want this," said Broadbridge of the partnership. "This is a thing they want to see happen. We're at the table, solidly listening, and are responsive." In addition to constructing a new science building in 2015, Southern created a new Office of STEM Innovation and Leadership to serve as the main driver of innovation and growth in the STEM disciplines. This office manages the flow of information among the City of New Haven, educational partners, industry representatives and faculty at the university. It also develops opportunities for students to take part in innovative research projects and internship programs that more directly apply classroom learning to the students' future careers. Based in part on learnings from the partnership, Southern last fall created a bachelor's degree program in biotechnology, which aligned pre-existing and new courses with the needs of the biotech industry. The university also created a biochemistry concentration in the B.S. degree in chemistry, and is working to develop other academic programs that will help meet the bioscience industry's needs. Broadbridge said that these efforts intended to make students employable once they finish school, have led to increased internship opportunities, many of which lead to jobs after graduation. On a broader scale, Southern and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system have partnered with The Jackson Laboratory, the Farmington-based group researching genomic solutions for global diseases, to co-sponsor a bioscience careers forum. At the forum, college students – as well as select high-school students – can hear from speakers from area bioscience companies. Administrators at both UConn and Southern say business partnerships provide valuable, necessary experience to students, many of whom stay in this state and enter the workforce after graduating from college. They also connect businesses in the state with competent, highly trained future job candidates. "We don't only educate students," said Maric. "We provide high- value jobs that young people want to take, and allow them to stay in Connecticut." Students working in the UConn lab funded by Boehringer Ingelheim. EDUCATION & RESEARCH [Photo by Karin Burgess, UCONN Photo]

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