The North Carolina Biotechnology Center is a private, non-profit organization located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. Founded in 1984 by the North Carolina General Assembly, it was the first state-sponsored biotechnology initiative in the nation, merging the interests of the academic private, and public sectors.[1] The North Carolina Biotechnology Center's mission is to provide long-term economic and societal benefits to North Carolina through support of biotechnology research, business, education and strategic policy. It receives nearly all of its funding from the North Carolina General Assembly.
Since 1984 the North Carolina Biotechnology Center has invested more than $187 million in state monies to develop biotechnology statewide. It is not a site for laboratory research or company incubation, but it works to strengthen the research capabilities of North Carolina’s companies and universities.
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The permanent headquarters of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center in Research Triangle Park is a hub for work, learning and interaction. The buildings encompass 67,000 square feet (6,200 m2) and is divided into three main parts:
In addition to its Research Triangle Park headquarters, the Center has five regional offices across the state:
The North Carolina Biotechnology Center works toward six goals:
In 1981, the North Carolina Biotechnology Center (NCBC) was created by the North Carolina General Assembly.[2] At that time, the state’s General Assembly appointed a legislative study commission to determine how North Carolina could ensure long-term economic benefits from biotechnology. A yearlong study by the commission concluded that North Carolina needed a private, non-profit organization dedicated exclusively to biotechnology development.
Following that recommendation, state legislatures established the North Carolina Biotechnology Center in October 1984 as the world’s first government-sponsored biotechnology center. Many visionary leaders championed the initiative, including Gov. James B. Hunt, Lt. Gov. Robert B. Jordan, state Sen. Kenneth Royall and Sen. Gerry Hancock and state Representative Bobby Etheridge.
The first president of the N.C. Biotechnology Center was Dr. Leon Golberg, previously head of the Chemical Industry Institute of Toxicology in RTP.[3]