Gwinnett Tech Faculty Member Receives Georgia Bio Community Award

From Gwinnett Tech

Gwinnett Technical College faculty member Dr. Robert Powers, program director for Bioscience and Clinical Research, has been recognized by Georgia Bio for his substantial contributions to the state’s life sciences industry.

Every year, Georgia Bio acknowledges individuals and organizations with its Georgia Bio Community Awards. This year’s recipients will be honored at the Annual Awards Dinner on Jan. 22, 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., at Atlanta’s Fox Theater.

“Dr. Powers was on the forefront here in Georgia of championing life sciences in both educational and economic development circles. His commitment and passion to the field and to his students is truly commendable and has contributed to the growth of the industry in our region,” said Dr. Cathy Scholz, dean of Life Sciences, Gwinnett Tech.

Dr. Powers has been a faculty member of Gwinnett Technical College since 2002. He initiated the Clinical Research Professional certificate and Bioscience associate degree programs at Gwinnett Tech in 2005.

During his time working with Georgia Bio, Dr. Powers assisted the Governor’s Office in recruitment efforts for bioscience companies with Projects Aardvark, Bamboo and Cactus. He also served on the Life Sciences team of the Governor’s Commission for a New Georgia and presented to the State Legislature as an advocate of greater state involvement in bioscience economic development. Dr. Powers was on the senior leadership team for the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce that put together the first two Clinical Research in Georgia Conferences in 2012 and 2013.

Dr. Robert Powers, M.Div., Ph.D. graduated from Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C. with a major in Chemistry. He earned his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Afterwards, Dr. Powers researched the role of intracellular calcium in pancreatic acinar cell function while working at Harvard and Beth Israel Hospital.

When he moved to the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, he was awarded a five-year National Institutes of Health grant to continue his work on experimental models of acute pancreatitis. Dr. Powers continued his research on acute pancreatitis and was involved in studies about genotoxicity in gastric cancer when he relocated to Yale College of Medicine in New Haven, Conn.

Gwinnett Tech offers an associate degree in Bioscience Technology and certificate options in Clinical Research Technology. For more information, visit www.GwinnettTech.edu or call 770-962-7580.

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About Gwinnett Tech

Gwinnett Technical College, one of Georgia’s largest technical colleges, is committed to delivering relevant knowledge to meet the workforce training needs of its community. The college offers more than 50 associate degree, diploma and certificate programs and hundreds of seminars, workshops and courses providing specialized training. GTC is Gwinnett County’s largest provider of corporate training and now serves residents and businesses in north Fulton County.Gwinnett Technical College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the associate degree. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Gwinnett Technical College. In addition, some college programs hold separate licensure or accreditation status with appropriate agencies. For more information, visitwww.GwinnettTech.edu.

A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia.

About Georgia Bio

Georgia Bio (www.gabio.org) is the private, non-profit association whose members include pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies, medical centers, universities and research institutes, government groups and other business organizations involved in the development of life sciences related products and services.