Berkeley, California

In 1992, Bayer created Berkeley Biotechnology Education, Inc. as a nonprofit organization to support a unique hands-on biotechnology education and training program for local high school and community college students. This program of classroom study and lab practice, combined with paid summer and year-round internships at Bayer, prepares students for high-paying technical positions in the bioscience industry. Bayer employees dedicate their time as mentors and also provide assistance in curriculum development and technical support for the project. This program has become a national model for school-to-career programs. It is now featured in a U.S. Department of Labor study as an exemplary example of outstanding school-to-career partnerships.

Bayer Children's Science Center was established in 1997 with a grant to Rosa Parks Elementary School to outfit a science laboratory. Bayer employees provide tutoring and other support in Rosa Parks' classrooms and the Science Center. With the help of this support, the school was named a science magnet school and receives additional federal funding for its science programming.

In 1999 Bayer expanded its business/education partnerships to schools in Oakland, Vallejo and Sacramento, providing interactive field trips, evening and weekend family science activities, curriculum materials, and teacher professional development.

Employee-volunteers also use the Sensible Science self-contained portable science experiment to bring the wonders of science to students the classroom.