Bioscience Core Skills Institute

07/21/2026

🎉 Exciting news from Piedmont Virginia Community College!

We’re proud of these students for leading the way and look forward to seeing the impact they’ll make in the bioscience workforce. Congratulations to everyone who helped make this milestone possible!

06/06/2026

Big news at BCSI this week!
We are thrilled to welcome Stephanie VanderPas as our new Director of Programs and Strategic Partnerships. Stephanie officially started Monday and we couldn't be more excited to have her on the team.
Stephanie has spent nearly 20 years in healthcare business development, working across hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, and medical organizations to build partnerships, expand markets, and launch new programs. She is a natural connector and a strategic thinker, and she brings a track record of building the kinds of long-term relationships that actually move the needle.
What makes this extra special: Stephanie isn't new to BCSI. She worked with us as a marketing and branding consultant back in 2021-2022 and has been part of our story since early on. She knows what we're building and why it matters. Having her step into this leadership role is a natural next chapter for both of us.
Welcome, Stephanie! We are so glad you're here.

03/03/2026

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/road-credential-adoption-paved-employer-trust-protect-angela-consani-lkxac/

"I have written before about resisting the allure of the easy solution. Online multiple-choice assessment is the easy solution. It scales, it is cheap to administer, it is easy to report, and it creates the appearance of standardization. It also has a financial allure. When a credentialing body can increase margin by shifting from performance-based assessment to knowledge-only testing, the incentives are obvious.

But, employer trust is not built on convenience. It is built on rigor, transparency, and consistency. It is built when the credential signal reliably predicts hiring readiness. Once that connection weakens, the signal degrades. A credential becomes a checkbox. Employers stop treating it as meaningful because trust is lost. And when employers stop believing, students and schools pay the price."

Across the country, CTE leaders are being asked to provide evidence of skills acquisition. Perkins V and state accountability frameworks have pushed programs toward Industry-Recognized Credentials (IRCs) because, in theory, an IRC is supposed to serve as a credible signal.

02/03/2026

New research study seeking feedback from those who have completed STEM microcredentials. Link:

This study is validating the ALIGN Scale which will capture learner experiences with STEM microcredentials.