Amgen Foundation Announcement and AVP Testimony

ABE-LA Breaking News: Amgen Foundation Announcement and AVP Testimony

The Amgen Foundation announced a fresh commitment of $12.4 million to the ABE program, increasing the total commitment to a staggering $50 million since 1991. The program currently runs in 24 regions in the U.S. and worldwide- representing 13 countries- and is set to expand to communities in Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa through pilot programming, igniting the spark of scientific literacy in an additional 180,000 students globally over the next two years. What started as a collaboration between educators and Amgen scientists at one California high school next to Amgen's headquarters 30 years ago has been updated and evolved to engage students today from Tampa to Tokyo to Turkey to bring hands-on biotech lab experiences to nearly 1 million students worldwide. Training teachers and reaching students and communities that are under-resourced is a key pillar of the Amgen Foundation’s work.

Free online resources to complement the ABE curriculum and bridge academic gaps are available to all teachers and students worldwide through close collaboration with LabXchange.” The Foundational Concepts and Techniques in Biotechnology resources, based on the core ABE curriculum, are available in 14 languages, including the latest translation in Ukrainian.

The inspiring story of Raul Lazaro, Amgen Researcher and ABE volunteer defied financial constraints, and societal expectations, by breaking barriers and shattering stereotypes that often picture scientists in a rigid frame. Through his work with the Amgen Biotech Experience, Lazaro opens a window to a world that welcomes dreamers, inviting them to be part of a journey where curiosity meets opportunity, and a world where determination is a gateway to a future with ground-breaking discoveries and life-changing innovations.

Testimony by Raul Lazaro, Amgen Researcher and ABE volunteer, and Linda Ohlrich, High school teacher: https://www.amgen.com/stories/2023/10/bringing-cutting-edge-science-to-classrooms-across-the-world