Mount Marty University graduate biotechnology management program awarded $2 million dollar grant from the National Science Foundation

The graduate biotechnology management program at Mount Marty University has been awarded $2 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support their innovative biotechnology workforce development initiative called the Dakota Biotechnology Scholars Program. This program provides graduate scholarships along with a robust student support program centered on student engagement, mentoring and career development. Located on Mount Marty’s Sioux Falls campus, the 30-credit, fully online program will welcome its third cohort of students this fall, focusing on biotech management in pharmaceuticals, agriculture and other biosciences.

“As the only biotechnology degree that is taught entirely by current industry professionals, this program is truly one of kind,” said Mark Brown, Ph.D., professor and executive director of biotechnology at Mount Marty. Brown is also the principal investigator for the NSF-funded Dakota Biotechnology Scholars Program. In addition to its focus on scholarships and student training, the grant initiative also includes an educational research component to determine which of its innovative program practices have the greatest impact on student academic performance, career outcomes and future employer satisfaction.

“With its emphasis on developing future biotechnology industry leaders, this program is responsive to a critical workforce need,” said Brown. The program’s faculty come from a range of executive roles at organizations ranging from Pfizer to U.S. Department of Defense. 

The biotechnology program, which is the first of its kind in the Dakotas, is just one of a growing suite of graduate-level health science programs at Mount Marty. This August, the university will launch the first cohort of its new graduate program in regulatory science. Brown worked with Aaron Harmon, Ph.D., general manager and director of quality at Inanovate, and David Pearce, Ph.D., chair of the International Rare Diseases Research Consortium, in the development of the new regulatory science program. Both Harmon and Pearce are now on faculty at Mount Marty. “Having well trained regulatory experts in our region is particularly important in the approval of therapeutics for rare diseases, which often traverse unique regulatory pathways,” said Pearce. 

For more information on Mount Marty’s biotechnology management and regulatory science programs, contact Mark Brown at Mark.Brown@MountMarty.edu.

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ABOUT MOUNT MARTY UNIVERSITY

Founded in 1936 by the Benedictine Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery, Mount Marty University is South Dakota's only Catholic institution of higher education. Located along the bluffs of the Missouri River in Yankton, with additional locations in Watertown and Sioux Falls, Mount Marty offers undergraduate and graduate degrees focusing on student and alumni success in high-demand fields such as health sciences, education, criminal justice, business, accounting, and more. A community of learners in the Benedictine tradition, Mount Marty emphasizes academic excellence and develops well-rounded students with intellectual competence, professional and personal skills and moral, spiritual and social values. To learn more, visit mountmarty.edu.