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InnovaBio

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	InnovaBio is an innovative partnership of corporations and educators working to support Utah's biotechnology industry. We offer a low risk environment for organizations wishing to develop a product or wanting to explore new ideas using our state of the art biotechnology lab, qualified scientists and student interns. The challenging research completed by our interns creates a valuable talent pool for Utah biotechnology companies.
The overall goal of the contract research organization, InnovaBio, was to create flexible industry-based research internship opportunities that were available to high school and college students. InnovaBio contracts projects, both research and development and services, from local life science companies and interns work as teams to conduct the work. The work is conducted on-site at the Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) Biotechnology labs and supervised by the InnovaBio scientific staff. Students receive credible research experience and internship credit.
Additionally, students will learn critical soft skills such as:
- Effective communication - Effective team working - Problem solving - Leadership

Our mission is to mentor the next generation of Biotechnology Graduates and simultaneously assist local scientific and biotech enterprises in developing research projects.

OUR GOALS
1. Provide a challenging and exciting training environment for high school and college interns
2. Provide optimal access to all interns to increase success in their career path
3. Provide quality research services to contract company partners in a directed and timely fashion
4. Contribute to economic and workforce development for the State of Utah

InnovaBio featured on KSL News (PDF)
InnovaBio featured in Utah Business (PDF)


The InnovaBio Program is a unique career and technical education program in Utah aimed at training high school and college students for entry-level positions in the biotechnology industry. It prepares students for immediate hands-on work in critical, high-impact industries in a way no other training program does.
The InnovaBio program is housed in the Health Science building located on the Jordan Campus. This building provides students with an instrumentation lab, two fully equipped wet labs, a cell culture room and a prep-room. Because of the size of the facility the students are also able to gain hands on working knowledge with several larger pieces of equipment. For example a 3130xl Genetic Analyzer DNA Sequencer, 7500 Fast Real-Time PCR Machine, Biomek 3000 Automation Workstation and a Cell Lab Quanta SC Flow Cytometer. What makes the InnovaBio program special is its innovative partnership with start-up biotech companies. These start-up companies will contribute to the students learning by providing services such as instruction, guest lectures, and internship opportunities.

Our laboratories are located on the Salt Lake Community College's Jordan Campus, in the Health Science building. The main lab is room JHS 218.

The address is 9301 South Wights Fort Road, West Jordan, Utah 84088

Our laboratory is managed by:

	Adam Blaszczak Director, InnovaBio Office: JHS 257 Phone: 801-957-6323 FAX: 801-957-6373 Email: adam.blaszczak@slcc.edu
A native of Poland, Adam in 1992 received TEMPUS scholarship to conduct his research for Masters Degree in Dr. Robert Glass's laboratory at the Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK. For his graduate work at the University of Gdansk he conducted his research in Maciej Zylicz's lab on the heat shock response in Escherichia coli. In 1995 he became a research associate at the Institute of Biophysics and Biochemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences (IBB PAN) Warsaw/Gdansk, Poland. He received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the University of Gdansk in 1998. Before joining the InnovaBio team for over ten years Adam conducted research on transcriptional gene regulation in cancer cells at the Huntsman Cancer Institute.
	Mary Nelson Assistant Director, InnovaBio Office: JHS 240 Phone: 801-957-6327 FAX: 801-957-6373 Email: mary.nelson@slcc.edu
Mary received her Bachelor's degree in Biochemistry from Seattle University in 2000. She entered the University of Utah to study Oncological Sciences at the University of Utah Huntsman Cancer Institute. Her graduate work focused on the ETS family of transcription factors and the response of Ets1 to the Ras/MAPK and calcium signaling pathways. Mary received her Ph.D. in 2007 and continued to work in her graduate lab until January of 2009 when she was hired by SLCC. She is very happy to be a part of training the new generation of scientists. When Mary is not in the lab, she enjoys playing softball and competing in triathlons.
	Alejandro Pabon Research Technician, InnovaBio Office: JHS 241 Phone: 801-957-6338 FAX: 801-957-6373 Email: miguel.pabon@slcc.edu
Alejandro was born over thirty years ago, in a prime Caribbean coastal town in Venezuela. His mother is a Clinical Biochemist who runs her own lab and his father is a retired Chemical Engineer who spends his time now as an adventurer/traveler. He graduated with his Masters in Biochemistry from Utah State University. His research experience includes: Enzymology and molecular biology of the protozoa Leishmania mexicana and Biological nitrogen fixation on molybdenum and vanadium metal centers. His hobbies include: Bicycling on asphalt and dirt, rock-climbing, skiing the big open back country, surfing the warm coast when back at home and cooking and sewing during the night time.

Questions, comments, concerns, or more? Tell us about it.

Adam Blaszczak
Director, InnovaBio
Phone: 801-957-6323
FAX: 801-957-6373
Email: adam.blaszczak@slcc.edu

InnovaBio Application

Salt Lake Community College Application