2011-2012 Alumni Executive Committee

Summary

The goal of the Alumni Network Executive Committee (ANEC) is to create a framework in which alumni can reap the benefits and opportunities that positively impact their careers and the bioscience community. Through developing strategic infrastructure and supporting partnerships, the ANEC aims to promote interactions between industry professionals, alumni, and current students and to actively attract highly qualified candidates to the Fundamentals program. The invaluable opportunity of serving on the ANEC allows committee members to develop leadership experience and gain insights into the life sciences industry.

Positions Available – One Year Term: June 2011- June 2012.

President

The President is responsible for coordinating the activities of the VP’s and Alumni Ambassadors.  It is the responsibility of the President, in consultation with the Center for Biotechnology,  to develop the strategic objectives of the Executive Committee with the VP’s and ensure the timeliness and quality of execution of various programs, events, and communications administered by the executive committee.

The president is the Ambassador of the Program and its Alumni and is responsible for maintaining cohesion within the Executive Committee. He or she will be responsible for developing a strong relationship with alumni and helping to foster alumni and industry participation by ensuring the development and execution of the Executive Committee’s yearly agenda.

VP, Industry Relations

The Vice President of Industry Relations responsible for forging relationships between industry professionals and the alumni. The VP does this through various avenues, both professional networking events and informal ones. These activities include organizing networking and professional development  events.

VP, Alumni Relations

The VP Alumni Relations is responsible for supporting and promoting interactions between Alumni and alumni special events. This VP will work closely with the VP Industry Relations on events and the VP Comm/PR on alumni information management.

VP, Communications and Public Relations

This position is responsible for all outreach and promotion for the program and alumni network. He/She publishes the alumni news, coordinates the Annual Call for Applications and works with other VPs to ensure that their communication needs are met. The individual is also responsible for ensuring that alumni contacts are accurate and up to date on all  electronic group portals. This VP looks for creative ways to promote the program via on-line blogs, forums and other new media sources.

The ANEC members hold key leadership positions and will work closely with the Center for Biotechnology to achieve the goals of the network.

The Executive Committee will be involved in, but not limited to, the following activities:

1. Industry outreach
2. On-line Alumni Portfolio, email distribution list and database
3. Management of social and professional networking sites related to alumni
4. Alumni news & website
5. Networking events
6. Information sessions for the recruitment of new program attendees

Nomination Guidelines:

• All Alumni and current students are eligible to apply.
• Candidates can be self nominated or nominated by peers.
• Candidates must be seconded by at least one fellow alumni or current student.
• Optional – Candidates may also include a support signature from a Course Director. Course directors can support more than one candidate.
• Please submit the following information to Kate Hutchinson, copying Heather Bielski via email -Deadline extended to Friday May 27, 2011.
  1. Position you are applying for
  2. List of alumni/current class member/s who support your nomination
  3. If desired, optional endorsement course director
• A brief statement of interest must also be submitted to Kate Hutchinson, copying Heather Bielski via email as an attachment by Friday May 27, 2011. Please indicate which position you are interested in, why you are the ideal candidate for the position and ‘x’ factors that should be considered. Candidates are encouraged to show their ability to think “outside the box” in their statements and how they can best serve their fellow alumni.  This statement should be no more that 150 words. This statement will be posted on the website and voting will take place via the web.
• The elections will be held on-line starting the week of June 1st. All Alumni will be eligible to vote.

2011 Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry Program

The Center for Biotechnology is looking for alumni interested in volunteering to serve as Teaching Assistants (TAs) for the 2011 Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry Program.

Serving as a program TA allows for enhanced interaction with Course Directors and guest industry participants. It will also provide additional experience with technology commercialization.

TAs will work directly with Course Directors to prepare material for the course including presentations for lectures and supplemental class readings. TAs will also serve as “project managers” for the semester commercialization, conducting research on all projects and working directly with student groups and course directors to guide the reports and final presentations.

Interested Alumni should contact Kate Hutchinson at the Center for Biotechnology (kposnanski@notes.cc.sunysb.edu) by Friday Nov. 12, 2010.

2010-2011 Alumni Executive Committee

We are looking forward to a productive year to come under their leadership!

A great big thanks goes out to our current Alumni Executive Committee for their hard work and dedication over the past year. Under their leadership a new alumni website was launched, a seminar series was produced in Manhattan in Fall 2009, three newsletters were published, our first summer bbq was held and many other networking and social events were planned. They did an amazing job! Thank you Bryan, Danielle, Mary, Jenne & Matt!

President
Dee Dao, Ph.D. (unopposed)

VP Alumni Relations
Matthew Engel

Antonio Alvarez Pinto

VP Industry Relations
Veronica Dudu, Ph.D. (unopposed)

VP Communications & Public Relations
Atulya Prasad (unopposed)

President

Dear Alumni,
I had a great experience in this program and would like to serve as president to help make the course even better. I would like to concentrate on enhancing the program career development by creating interest groups for students/alumni that are working or exploring career opportunities in specific fields. I believe these career development clubs would be a great way for like-minded individuals to meet, share resources, and network. I have experience in marketing and outreach through my work in UNIFEM. I am dedicated to seeing the program expand its outreach and influence in the greater NY area. I hope to have the opportunity to facilitate professional career development for the alumni.
Sincerely,
Dee Dao, Ph.D.

VP Alumni Relations

Dear Friends,

Many of you may know me as a classmate, colleague, student, mentor, or friend- but some of you may not know me at all. My name is Matthew Engel and I graduated from the Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry Program in 2008 while in the biomedical engineering department at Stony Brook University. Over the last year I have been privileged to work directly with the current Alumni Executive Committee which has brought you such programs as the 2010 Nuts and Bolts Series and the new Alumni Website (www.fobip.org/alumni). I would like your vote for VP of Alumni Relations so that I can continue to increase the value of our graduates to existing and new industry connections while driving participation in future programs and events we have in store for 2011 and beyond.

I perceived the Fundamentals course to be a career-changing experience which opened my eyes to new horizons in the business and legal sectors of life science. It showed me that there are opportunities everywhere for scientists to apply their knowledge. Many of the key ingredients to success could be found within our classroom and in the footsteps of our own mentors such as Angeline Judex, Tom Ippolito, Lorrence Green, and Michael Bielski. I would sincerely like to thank each of them for their tireless devotion and dedication to the Program which has become an enormous success, educating the next generation of scientists, industry leaders, businessmen and women.

Outside of the Fundamentals Program, during 2009 I was elected to the Board of Directors for the National Association for Graduate-Professional Students (NAGPS) which represents graduate students nationwide and served on the Executive Committee for the Stony Brook University Graduate Student Organization (GSO). I hope to use my team building experience, organizational and leadership skills to bring the alumni network to the next level and continue to create benefits for all of its members.

Thank you for your consideration, and if you would like to contact me I can be reached at matthewaengel@gmail.com or via my profile on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewaengel

I look forward to working for you all next year!
Matthew Engel

In the summer of 2010 I will be graduating from Columbia University with an MA in Biotechnology with the interest of entering the biotech industry and obtain experience in the many different divisions of a biotech company that work together to develop and regulate products prior to market approval.

Having developed relationships and networks with members of different institutions, I believe I would be a good candidate to help promote the activities of the Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry.  With this position I would work effectively with the VP of Industry Relations to organize and prepare networking events between alumni, current members of the Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry program and biotechnology / pharmaceutical sector companies and its members.

Given my strong drive for developing friendships and for event planning, I feel that as the VP of Alumni Relations I would be able to contribute to the team as well as help provide its members with new opportunities.

I look forward to working with the Alumni Network Executive Committee (ANEC) to help make ties between the members of the Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry program and members of the biotechnological and pharmaceutical industries.

Antonio Alvarez Pinto

VP Industry Relations

I am enthusiastic about submitting my nomination for the position of Vice President of Industry Relations.  In this capacity, I plan to serve as a liaison between current FOBIP students & alumni, and the bioscience industry professionals. I would take initiative in helping you propel your career through direct access to internships, job offers, development workshops, mentorship opportunities, and, if budget allows, frequent social events with our industry partners.

The VP Industry Relations position has important requirements and, likewise, the successful candidate must have exceptional attributes.  The first and most important attribute is the ability to establish new and lasting partnerships with the industry. I have managed interactions with influential Fortune 500 corporations while interning with MIC & Associates, a business development consultancy, and gained valuable experience in expanding their business network.

Another important attribute is the versatility in communicating with people with a variety of backgrounds and characters. I was first put to test in my former position with U. Bucharest Student Representative Committee. I had the great opportunity to facilitate the dialogue between students and Faculty, succeeded by implementing necessary rights such as study scholarships and student housing.

Furthermore, the VP should have experience in organizing career development events. In my current capacity as CUNY Post-Doctoral Committee Member, I have planned successful professional development and grant writing workshops.

Not only do I posses the skills and passion needed for VP Industry Relations position, but also I am keen to integrate my capabilities with the current approach and strategic plan for industry networking. With your support, together with the President and the Executive Committee, we will expand the Alumni Network and make it more successful.
Sincerely,
Veronica Dudu, Ph.D.

VP Communications & Public Relations

Currently, I am a Graduate Student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Stony Brook University; working as a Research Assistant in the Clark Lab.

In addition to possessing the requisite skills namely, being a team player and communication skills, I work well in bringing people together. Being new to Graduate School, I bring to the table open-mindedness for new and unconventional ideas. This coupled with a sprinkling of careful, rational thinking will make me an ideal candidate for the job. I believe my experience, albeit limited, in the lab and beyond will hold me in good stead.

I take this opportunity to wish my fellow students and alumni all the very best and hope they see in me what I see in myself that makes me want to work with the ANEC and the Center for Biotechnology.
Thank You,
Atulya Prasad

Download Full Fall 2009 Newsletter Here:

Fall 2009 Alumni Newletter: Issue 10

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Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry Program
Training Scientists Who Mean Business

Encourage colleagues and friends to join your ranks as participants in the Fundamentals of the Bioscience Industry Program! Applications are being accepted for the Spring 2010 offering. Graduate students and post doctoral fellows are eligible for scholarships from the Center for Biotechnology that will cover part, or in some cases all, of the program fees associated with their participation in the program.

Program applicationand detailed information can be found on-line at www.fobip.org< or interested students contact Kate Posnanski at kposnanski@notes.cc.sunysb.edu.