2008 Woodie Awards
New programs mean jobs right out of high school
Natalie Niemeyer
Issue date: 9/27/07 Section: News
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Now there is even more meaning to the Kirkwood Community College phrase, "Start Here. Go Anywhere!" Starting this fall, students attending Kirkwood have another route to take toward the careers of their dreams. New Biotech and Geographical Information Systems programs have been added to Kirkwood's long list of opportunities for students.
Kirkwood has become the fourth school in Iowa to implement versatile Biotech classes onto its list of courses. Students planning to do quality control, be research assistants or work in a medical lab as something other than a technician can now do so with a two-year Associate of Applied Science degree from Kirkwood.
Biotechnology, once left to those with doctorates and master's degrees, is now a "booming industry" in the Cedar Rapids - Iowa City Corridor, opening many doors for students with two year degrees.
"As companies expand, they are looking to diversify their employee population and the requirement for 'higher' degrees is not as necessary," Greg Petersen, coordinator of Biotechnology, said.
Defined as using living organisms or the products of living organisms for human benefit to make a product or solve a problem, Biotechnology has become increasingly popular since its start in San Francisco in the late 1980s.
"Red (health care) and white (industrial) Biotechnology will be, and is, of great importance to Iowa," Georg Anderl, bio refinery operative director at Genencor said. "There is already a big footprint in Biotechnology in Iowa."
Students in the program take general courses, such as composition and algebra, but are heavily enrolled in science and technology classes like molecular biology techniques and introduction to computers. An internship in the Biotech field caps off the plan of study.
Although Kirkwood's Biotech program is in its first year, about a year of planning went into making it what it is today. During that year, Petersen worked on basic curriculum and used the Grow Iowa Values Fund, administered by the department of economics, to finance the program. "It took a good year to get off and running," Petersen said.
Kirkwood has become the fourth school in Iowa to implement versatile Biotech classes onto its list of courses. Students planning to do quality control, be research assistants or work in a medical lab as something other than a technician can now do so with a two-year Associate of Applied Science degree from Kirkwood.
Biotechnology, once left to those with doctorates and master's degrees, is now a "booming industry" in the Cedar Rapids - Iowa City Corridor, opening many doors for students with two year degrees.
"As companies expand, they are looking to diversify their employee population and the requirement for 'higher' degrees is not as necessary," Greg Petersen, coordinator of Biotechnology, said.
Defined as using living organisms or the products of living organisms for human benefit to make a product or solve a problem, Biotechnology has become increasingly popular since its start in San Francisco in the late 1980s.
"Red (health care) and white (industrial) Biotechnology will be, and is, of great importance to Iowa," Georg Anderl, bio refinery operative director at Genencor said. "There is already a big footprint in Biotechnology in Iowa."
Students in the program take general courses, such as composition and algebra, but are heavily enrolled in science and technology classes like molecular biology techniques and introduction to computers. An internship in the Biotech field caps off the plan of study.
Although Kirkwood's Biotech program is in its first year, about a year of planning went into making it what it is today. During that year, Petersen worked on basic curriculum and used the Grow Iowa Values Fund, administered by the department of economics, to finance the program. "It took a good year to get off and running," Petersen said.
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