Sure-BioChem Laboratories plans to operate a satellite facility on the campus at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.
The addition of Sure-BioChem to Cheyney’s campus is part of a bigger strategy the university has undertaken to leverage some of its unused and underutilized real estate as part of a way to re-establish the school as a premier academic institution and generate revenue to pay down debt and balance its budget.
The strategy is a novel one for the nation’s first and oldest historically black college that counts among its alumni the late Ed Bradley, who was a “60 Minutes” correspondent.
Part of the effort involves attracting companies such Sure-BioChem to lease space at the campus to bolster the school’s career-informed curriculum and provide internships, potential job opportunities and training for students.
The school has already formed several of these public-private partnerships and plans to add more. To date, it has partnered with: Navrogen Inc., a Glen Mills biopharmaceutical company that also occupies space at Cheyney’s science center; Epcot Crenshaw Corp., which focuses on technology that addresses environmental issues; ASI Chemicals, a startup that manufactures chemicals for pharmaceutical companies; and Advanced Alchemy Labs, which farms and processes hemp for medicinal use.
An added benefit for companies is the school’s location in a Keystone Innovation Zone, a state program that gives tax credits to companies that locate there.
Sure-BioChem is a minority women-owned small business and does testing for different industries including pharmaceutical and biotechnology. It expects to provide internships and other opportunities to students.
Source: Philadelphia Business Journal