LSWC Q2 2026 Best Workforce Strategies Roundtable

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Bolstering the Workforce Pipeline: Early Career Awareness in the Life Sciences

“If you don’t have the workforce for biotech, you don’t have the building blocks to succeed. — NSCEB Commissioner during the Georgia Roadshow.

As the U.S. life sciences industry accelerates its growth, the strength of its future workforce is increasingly uncertain. While some global competitors begin cultivating bioscience talent early, most U.S. students have little to no exposure to biotechnology until college—if at all. At the same time, community college programs, essential for training in-demand technicians, face persistent enrollment challenges due to limited upstream awareness and few high school pathways into the field.

In this second LSWC Roundtable, industry association and workforce leaders spotlight innovative efforts to close these gaps—from early student engagement initiatives to programs equipping high school educators to teach biotechnology. Join us for a forward-looking conversation on building robust, scalable career pathways that will ensure a skilled, future-ready workforce to sustain innovation in the life sciences sector.

Speakers:

• Ying-Tsu Loh, Executive Director, Bay Area Bioscience Education Community (BABEC)

• Angie McMurry, Director of Industry Engagement and Workforce Development, Ohio Life Sciences

• Shelly Ridder, Community Engagement and Workforce Development Manager, Oregon Life Sciences

• Ann Vogel, Senior Vice President, iBIO Institute

Moderator: Maria Thacker-Goethe, Co-Founder & Board Secretary, Life Sciences Workforce Collaborative; President & CEO, Georgia Life Sciences (mthacker@galifesciences.org | 404-966-2027 cell)

Ying-Tsu Loh

Angie McMurry

Shelly Ridder

Ann Vogel