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The Bioscience Association of Maine (BioME) and our 230 industry members would like to publicly thank Senate President Troy Jackson and Maine legislators for supporting a new mobile learning lab focused on STEM fields.
Life sciences is one of the fastest growing industries in Maine. Currently, 480 bioscience establishments employ 9,500 professionals across our state, with an average salary of $108,000. Life science jobs here have been growing faster than in all other New England states. In the past five years, our high-paying bioscience jobs have grown by 42 percent.
With such substantial growth, the Maine life science industry needs to fill our workforce gap. Maine has a unique opportunity to become a thriving biotech hub, but our industry currently lacks appropriate career pathways for Maine students, especially in rural areas.
We believe that technically proficient talent starts with investing in our K-12 students. Most public schools in Maine do not have access to labs or lab equipment. This is especially true in our rural areas where opportunities are more limited. We strongly believe that this new mobile learning lab traveling from school to school will make a substantial impact on exposing young Maine learners to real life science.
On behalf of our organization, our many collaborative partners, and most importantly Maine students from every county, we thank Sen. Jackson and his legislative colleagues for making this dream a reality. We are confident it will return the investment many times over in the coming years.
Agnieszka Carpenter
Executive Director
Bioscience Association of Maine
Gorham