March 19, 2024

Russ Read is the Executive Director for the National Center for the Biotechnology Workforce program at Forsyth Tech. He is a native of Montreal, Canada and has been running the program at the college for more than 20 years. Russ has many years of experience in biotech as well as in pharmaceuticals in the United States and in Canada.

Russ began his career in North Carolina as the head of a small biopharmaceutical company for Wake Forest University. He was then asked if he could run the BioTech program at Forsyth Tech. Russ has a huge passion for helping students and provides professional development to instructors that reflects the industry.

For example, Russ holds a camp for instructors that gives them updated training that gives them more exposure to the industry, which in return makes them stronger and can easily relate better to the students in the classroom. The BioTech lab is located downtown which rents out vents, and instructors from all over the world come to this training program and use these lab benches.

Russ’ program also helps map out the skills needed for instructors to use for students in the bioscience program at Forsyth Tech. Russ is always thinking of new and innovative ways to prepare the bioscience program for the future. The program is constantly pursuing grants to sustain the program and to find innovative ways to improve instructors’ skill tactics which they can effectively deliver to students. You can read more about the National Center for the Biotechnology Workforce here.