VGCC Offers BioWork Program at Franklin Campus starting in January
Classes to train area residents for jobs in the growing biotechnology manufacturing field will be held on weekdays and evenings and on Saturdays, beginning in January at Vance-Granville Community College. VGCC will once again be offering “BioWork for Process Technicians” in the spring 2007 semester at its state-of-the-art Biotechnology center at the Franklin County Campus in Louisburg.BioWork is a statewide training course that prepares students for employment as process technicians within the areas of Bioprocess, Pharmaceutical, or Chemical Manufacturing. The rigorous 17-week BioWork curriculum covers topics such as workplace safety, chemistry, process control, and microbiology. The curriculum also provides students with extensive ‘hands-on’ laboratory experience.Technicians are in high demand throughout the state, including at area companies such as Novozymes in Franklinton, Revlon in Oxford and Iams in Henderson. Thousands of North Carolinians work in the state’s biomanufacturing industry today, and the demand for trained BioWork technicians is expected to increase over the next 10-15 years.The BioWork classes are scheduled at three different times for the convenience of students. Students may take the class either from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. or from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Monday and Wednesday, starting Jan. 17. There will also be a class offered on Saturdays, starting Jan. 20, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. All classes and registration will be held in room F306 on the Franklin County Campus. The total cost for the class, including textbooks, is $138.30, which is due during registration. Registration for Monday-Wednesday students will be held on Jan. 10 from 9 a.m. until noon, and from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Students taking classes on Saturday will register on the date of the first class, Jan. 20, at 8 a.m. For more information or to pre-register, please call Julie Kinlaw at (252) 738-3632. Potential students may leave their mailing address, so that specific information will be mailed to them. Anyone calling to pre-register should leave the specific class time that they would like to attend.
