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Biomanufacturing & Engineering for the Appalachian Highlands: Updates on the Development of a Scalable Bioengineering Program in Rural Settings

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Conference

2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Portland, Oregon

Publication Date

June 23, 2024

Start Date

June 23, 2024

End Date

July 12, 2024

Conference Session

Engineering education issues relevant to agricultural, biological and ecological engineering-Part 2

Tagged Division

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Division (BAE)

Tagged Topic

Diversity

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/46652

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Paper Authors

biography

Richard Cody Prince East Tennessee State University Orcid 16x16 orcid.org/0000-0003-1199-9465

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Dr. Richard C. Prince is an Assistant Professor of Engineering at East Tennessee State University. His research focuses on the development of techniques in vibrational spectroscopy and imaging to study biological and materials systems and to the application of optical sensing to problems in bioengineering. He has a passion for interdisciplinary science and engineering education and has sought to use techniques from multiple fields to improve the applicability of STEM education. He received his B.A. in science policy and physics in 2015. He completed doctoral work at the University of California, Irvine, under Professor Eric O. Potma in 2021, where his dissertation focused on the application of small, vibrational tags to coherent Raman scattering microscopy to study cellular and tissue metabolism.

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PAMELA MIMS East Tennessee State University

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Aruna Kilaru East Tennessee State University

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Eric Jorgenson East Tennessee State University

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Abstract

Recently, there has been a push on the national level to improve US competitiveness in the sectors of bioengineering, biomanufacturing, and biotechnology writ large, as demonstrated in the Executive Order on Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy. To date, much of the country's biotech infrastructure has been concentrated near coastal areas even though agricultural production in rural areas could provide suitable feedstocks for bioproduction. In this work, we present updates on our current project titled "Completing the Bioindustrial Pipeline: A Multidisciplinary Workforce Development Institute for Biological and Bioprocess Engineering for the Appalachian Highlands." This work seeks to establish a regional center for innovation and education in several biotechnology sectors. We will present the current status of the project and pitfalls that we have encountered and discuss ways that this program can be adapted and scaled to other areas. In particular, we will highlight our organism-agnostic approach and those aspects that we consider essential to the success of the project.

Prince, R. C., & MIMS, P., & Kilaru, A., & Jorgenson, E. (2024, June), Biomanufacturing & Engineering for the Appalachian Highlands: Updates on the Development of a Scalable Bioengineering Program in Rural Settings Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. https://peer.asee.org/46652

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