Meetings & Presentations
Meeting notes archived below for most recent collaborative session:
Past Meetings:
Virtual Speed Networking - Engaging students & industry partners
Friday, November 20th, 10:30 am-11:30am (Zoom Meeting)
We're all searching for new ways to support our programs and students during the pandemic. Virtual Speed Networking has become one bright spot in a sea of challenges for the CCSF Biotechnology program where we've used these types of events for
student career exploration and networking, building & maintaining industry partnerships and alumni networks, and recruitment. Additionally, there has been considerable interest in these types of events nationally, including at the recent ATE PI Conference where we presented on how to utilize this type of event in multiple variations for career exploration: https://bio-link.org/presentations and helped to run their Student/Industry Virtual Speed Networking Event.
In recognition of the interest in Virtual Speed Networking, utilizing Zoom breakout rooms, we thought we'd host a one hour meeting to discuss this type of event, featuring:
General outline and goals for a Virtual Speed Networking Event;
Guidelines on how to plan and host this type of event;
How to utilize this type of event to support a variety of goals: student career exploration, student networking, building & maintaining industry partnerships and alumni networks, and recruitment;
We hope this meeting will provide others the tools to start their own Virtual Speed Networking Events and will also lead to new ideas in how virtual platforms can help connect our programs to students and industry, and increase engagement (even from a distance).
Going Virtual while Sheltering-in-place: Developing Tools & Strategies
Friday, April 24th, 10:30 am-12 pm (Zoom Meeting)
With the onset of the current pandemic, when the shelter-in-place order was first put into effect, it took a long moment to take it all in. Our campuses were closing, our interns were being told they could no longer work in the lab. Rather than canceling everything and ending the semester abruptly, we were being encouraged to continue however possible, somehow developing engaging and comparable online versions of all our coursework and program-related activities.
This presented serious challenges for us. City College of San Francisco’s Biotech program prominently features the following:
Hands-on technical training through lab-based coursework;
Work-based learning through internships at local research labs and companies;
Networking events that bring people together to share their interest in doing scientific work;
And we rely heavily on in-person outreach and recruitment activities to help sustain the program.
So, we are currently working to develop new online tools and strategies for preparing and engaging our students, continuing as best we can with the work-based learning and lab-based technical training that defines our program, as well as outreach and recruitment that we need to keep our classes running, by means of virtual platforms. Ideally, we end up enhancing the way that we work with our students, providing them with additional resources and means of communicating for learning and working more effectively.
Developing, Sustaining & Utilizing an Alumni Network for Student Recruitment & Retention
Friday, February 21st (10am-11:30am PST)
Outreach and recruitment continues to be a top priority for most biotech training programs. Helping students understand what biotechnology is and see their own potential to pursue career opportunities in the field continues to be a challenge.
To this end, here at CCSF we have begun to rely more heavily on our alumni network for outreach, recruitment and retention. We believe that our students are able to identify and relate with alumni.
Here are some of the ways that we have helped our students connect with alumni:
Hosting alumni guest speakers (for classroom activities or outreach events)
Involving alumni at Speed Networking Events
Having current students reach out to alumni for informational interviews
We hope that you will join us for this upcoming meeting to share your experiences and ideas for developing and sustaining alumni networks.
Archives:
November 2020 Meeting Notes & Slides
funding provided by
for more information
James Lewis - Collaborative Organizer
Email: jlewis@ccsf.edu