Centered for Talent and 
Infrastructure Growth
Community Invests to Support Future Talent 
from Classroom, to Campus, to Career
W R I T T E N  BY  T O D D  N E F F
n the public imagination, biotech­
nology success rests on doctor­
ate-level talent deriving new 
therapies and medical devices based on 
highly specialized knowledge of the inner 
workings of cells, the interplay of bodily 
systems, the behaviors of new materials, 
and beyond.
The public imagination isn’t wrong. But it’s 
also incomplete. Because without people 
capable of tending to cell cultures, oper­
ating gene sequencers, managing produc­
tion, quality assurance, regulatory affairs, 
and much more, commercial success 
won’t follow creative brilliance.
Leaders in Colorado’s life sciences com­
munity, across public, private, academic 
and research, and nonprofit organizations 
are collaborating closely to support talent 
development in specialties that require 
smart people with specific skills. Colorado 
BioScience Institute (The Institute) plays a 
central role in several of these programs.
Major NSF Grant Powers 
Innovative QA/RA 
Certificate Program
There’s nothing quite like a nearly $1 
million National Science Foundation 
(NSF) grant award to fuel an idea to help 
students land good, high-paying jobs in 
roles that are hard for life sciences com­
panies to fill. 
The federal funding news came last fall 
for Chelsea Magin, Ph.D., an Associate 
Professor in Biomedical Engineering, 
Pediatrics, and Medicine at the University 
of Colorado Denver and University 
of Colorado Anschutz Department of 
Biomedical Engineering. She’s also Chair 
of the Colorado BioScience Institute 
Board of Directors. The idea: Provide 
a much-needed boost to the biotech 
and medical-device industries’ work­
force through a Quality Assurance (QA) 
and Regulatory Affairs (RA) Certificate 
Program designed to serve nontraditional 
learners. She crafted the program, which 
includes stackable credentials, alongside 
close to 40 life sciences companies. 
CU Denver and CU Anschutz, in partnership 
with The Institute, received nearly $1 million 
from the NSF for the QA/RA Certificate 
Program in October 2025. The grant, Magin 
says, confirmed “a fundamental need that 
has been overlooked a long time in biomed­
ical engineering.” Quality assurance and 
regulatory affairs “are key pieces in getting 
these scientific discoveries and innovations 
to patients’ bedsides.” 
I
“
There are so many 
folks in industry who 
are passionate about 
mentoring, training, 
and teaching,”
CHELSEA MAGIN, PH.D.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR 
DIRECTOR, QUALITY ASSURANCE 
& REGULATORY AFFAIRS 
CERTIFICATE PROGRAM 
BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING, 
PEDIATRICS AND MEDICINE 
UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER | 
ANSCHUTZ
BOARD CHAIR
COLORADO BIOSCIENCE INSTITUTE
The program’s first 11 students, 10 of them 
women, were already taking classes in 
the online, asynchronous program. Kiara 
Argenta, 26, was working a full-time swing 
shift as a restaurant server and pursuing a 
master’s in biotechnology when an academic 
advisor recommended the new program.  
Argenta, who describes herself as 
“detail-oriented and problem-solving,” saw 
an opportunity to differentiate herself in a 
2026-27 BIOSCIENCE COLORADO     35

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