about
Women in Bioscience
Bio Nebraska has expanded its commitment to women in STEM by launching Women in Bioscience, an initiative dedicated to professional development opportunities for women in Nebraska’s bioscience industry.
The mission of Bio Nebraska is to promote, connect, and catalyze the biosciences in Nebraska. As part of that mission, reducing barriers and creating more opportunities for women in bioscience-related careers is essential to realizing the industry’s potential. The Women in Bioscience initiative will provide educational events and workshops on topics ranging from mentorship to leadership with the goal to support women on their bioscience-career journeys.
Included is Bio Nebraska’s Women in Bioscience initiative is Nebraska Women in STEM, a partnership with Nebraska Cures, and Opportunity Corps: Women in STEAM, a partnership with the UNeTech Institute.
Why is supporting women in STEM and women in the bioscience workforce important to Nebraska?
- Companies are missing out on the advantages of a diverse workforce; this will continue as more STEM careers are required
- STEM jobs overall are projected to increase and expected to face a shortage of workers
The Stats:
- Women account for about 47 percent of overall careers but make up only about a quarter of the nation’s STEM careers*
- Women receive about the same number of undergraduate degrees as men but receive only 30 percent of STEM degrees*
- In 2019, only about 27% of Nebraska women 25 years or older worked in a core STEM occupation**
*”The STEM Gender GAP” – CQF Researcher, Sept. 7, 2018 – Volume 28, Issue 31
**Nebraska’s Women in STEM: Listen Then Act Report – June 2022
The Bio Nebraska Women in STEM initiative was founded by Bio Nebraska in 2017 as an annual luncheon intended to highlight the experiences of women in Nebraska’s STEM careers. The initiative expanded in 2020 to include more frequent professional development opportunities throughout the year, and then in 2021 further expanded into a partnership with Nebraska Cures after the launch of “Nebraska Women in STEM: Listen Than Act,” a report highlighting the experiences of Nebraska’s women STEM professionals and how to overcome industry barriers.
Today, the mission of Nebraska Women in STEM is to provide professional women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) an opportunity to connect, discuss, and collaborate in an effort to bring awareness and increase opportunities in STEM.
To do this, Bio Nebraska and Nebraska Cures we are working to:
- Address industry workforce shortages and diversity challenges by providing awareness and education and advocating for women in STEM.
- Create more career and leadership opportunities for women in STEM by providing professional development opportunities.
- Connect professional women in STEM through networking and mentorship opportunities.
Learn more about Nebraska Women in STEM by clicking the button below.
Women in Bioscience Advisory Committee
Agnes Lenagh, PhD
University of Nebraska Medical Center
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Director of Strategic Partnerships of the Office of Industry Engagement at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC)
Agnes Lenagh, Ph.D., is the Director of Strategic Partnerships of the Office of Industry Engagement at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), where she leads efforts to build and strengthen partnerships between academia and industry. She brings nearly a decade of experience in life sciences business development, technology transfer, and partnership cultivation, helping advance innovation and support UNMC’s strategic priorities.
Before returning to UNMC, Agnes spent eight years in a progressive career at Streck, ultimately serving as Associate Director of Business Development. During her tenure, she managed the company’s intellectual property portfolio, evaluated and managed new business opportunities, and guided strategic decisions rooted in scientific and market insight. Earlier in her career, she worked at UNeMed Corporation, managing university innovations and conducting licensing activities.
Agnes has a BS in Biology from the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico and a PhD from the University of Nebraska Medical Center. She serves on the advisory committees for Bio Nebraska’s Women in Bioscience and Nebraska Women STEM.
Amanda Wilson
Novonesis
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Technology Manager, Novonesis
Amanda Wilson, originally from Omaha, Nebraska, has a background in chemical engineer with a B.S from Missouri S&T. She’s spent most of her career working in production as an engineer for various companies. She joined Novonesis (formerly Novozymes) in 2015 as a process engineer, later served as as an operations director, and is now the Technology Manager. Amanda has a lot of passion for promoting and developing Women in STEM, after spending most of her career in the minority in both engineering and in manufacturing and encountering some of the hurdles many women in the STEM field have dealt with.
In her free time, she is an ultramarathoner, running 50k and 50 Mile races, and enjoys spending time with her husband and cat.
Get Involved
Interested in getting involved in the Bioscience or STEM community? Contact us and we can keep you up to date on upcoming events and news.