FGCU officials set to pitch partnership with Scripps

And Florida Gulf Coast University wants to be a part of it.

An educational partner, to be precise.

FGCU President William Merwin and biotechnology Director Randall Alberte planned to be in La Jolla, Calif., today to pitch the 6-year-old university's offerings to the biotech research giant's top officials.

"We want to bring their attention to what we have to offer, and ask them to consider FGCU as a viable partner in undergraduate biotechnology," Merwin said last week.

"We have a lot of bright, young students we could send to the institute over time, and also to catch the attention of the resulting pharmaceutical companies for our future technology and research park," Merwin said.

Gov. Jeb Bush announced last month a deal to lure Scripps Research Institute of La Jolla, near San Diego, to Florida. Scripps officials now are planning to build a research center in Palm Beach County as a secondary site.

Merwin, Alberte and other FGCU leaders see the Scripps center as a possible partner with unlimited opportunities for the university's students and faculty.

"You can bet all the other university presidents are making pitches, too," Merwin said. "What we have to offer is unique: Our undergraduate biotechnology program gives students hands-on research opportunities that only graduate-level students at other universities have."

Alberte couldn't be reached for comment, but he said earlier that, even though the Florida Scripps center would be across the peninsula from the Gulf Coast, distance wouldn't be a factor.

"This is a fantastic opportunity for the state," said Alberte, who joined FGCU in July. "The ripple effects will be astounding."

Alberte is developing a five-year master plan for FGCU's new biotech program and hopes to attract more faculty and students. Eventually, master's and doctoral degree programs will be added, he said.

Merwin said state Rep. Dudley Goodlette, R-Naples, made the arrangements for him and Alberte to meet with Scripps officials in La Jolla today.

The FGCU presentation Merwin and Alberte are pitching includes a core faculty summary resume, which gives a credential synopsis of the faculty and others connected with the program.

All of the faculty members have established research credentials in their respective fields, ranging from analytical, inorganic and physical chemistry to physiology, biochemistry, biophysics, cell and developmental biology, clinical medicine, immunology, microbiology, molecular biology and molecular genetics, the summary says.

Faculty members have received their formal training from institutions such as Duke University, Yale, UCLA, New York University, Tufts University, the University of Texas, the University of Florida, the University of North Carolina and Colorado State University.

Among the faculty, some members are actively conducting and pursuing funded research programs that involve undergraduate students, while others have chosen to focus their activities on undergraduate education reform.

Several faculty members are leading major reforms in methods of teaching and learning in the sciences, the summary continues. These have resulted in not only increased retention in math and science, but have inspired and motivated students who were not planning careers in the sciences to make them their career goals.

The summary notes that Alberte has had an innovative and productive career in academic research and teaching, government research and development and management, defense contract R&D development and start-up biotechnology, now his mission at FGCU.

He is the primary inventor on two issued and 16 pending patents covering biosensor technology and other projects. He has written more than 140 publications, and has served on numerous councils and federal agency policy panels.

Merwin and Alberte will report on their trip and the response from the Scripps officials when they return from La Jolla.

The Scripps Research Institute, although started with seed money donated by a sister of newspaper chain founder E.W. Scripps, is not connected with Scripps Howard Newspapers, which owns the Daily News.