ECU and PCC create new bioprocessing partnership

East Carolina University has partnered with the Bioprocessing Center at Pitt Community College to develop a bio-manufacturing degree completion program for students in the North Carolina Community College System who wish to obtain a bachelor’s degree.

The program, which will be available in the fall of 2006,will allow students with an associate’s degree in bio processing related areas from the NCCCS to obtain a bachelor’s degree from ECU.

Students typically complete an additional 63 credit hours of courses at ECU in order to earn the bio-manufacturing bachelor’s degree, said Paul Kauffmann, chair of ECU’s Department of Technology Systems in the College of Technology and Computer Science.

“This agreement will help meet the increasing demands for skilled workers in the fields of bio processing, bio manufacturing, and biological technology,” Kauffmann said “The advantages of this partnership are profound when considering North Carolina’s development of advanced manufacturing jobs focused on knowledge-based industries. We are committed to supporting the community colleges in their workforce development mission.”

The partnership wasjointly developed by Dave Batts of ECU’s department of technology systems and PCC’s Bill Cooper and Greg Smith.

The Bioprocessing Center at Pitt Community College is one of six centers in the BioNetwork of the state’s community college system.

Examples of careers available with a bachelor’s degree in bio-manufacturing include: manufacturingsupervisor, laboratory or pharmaceutical technician; quality control.

This degree completion track is the latest addition to ECU’s community college partnership options. The BS in Industrial Technology program offers six degree completion concentrations and is a critical element in state work force development. This program offers BS degree completion paths that integrate with approximately 100 technology oriented associate degree programs in the NCCCS.