After losing his mother to cancer, Deric Richardson was determined to find a career in the sciences to help find a cure for cancer, or at least treatments that would be easier on cancer patients.

In 2010, Deric graduated from the Laboratory Associates program at the BioTechnical Institute of Maryland (BTI). Following the program, BTI placed Deric in a paid internship at Paragon BioServices in West Baltimore where he was immediately hired after completing his internship and continues to work today.

BTI offers tuition-free training in basic laboratory skills to bright, ambitious, unemployed and underemployed high school graduate adult residents of Baltimore. At the end of the program, graduates are placed in BTI-paid internships which provide hands-on experience in a university or commercial lab or production facility, which is invaluable to the participant’s transition to professional employment.

Each internship experience is unique and opportunities run the gamut from observation of detailed processes to hands-on experience in assisting with important research. BTI has partnered with GiveCorps to help support the paid internship program for participants, allowing the organization to fund internships for longer periods of time and at more preceptors.

Deric says, “From day one, it opened my eyes to so many things, it’s just been magical since then. I finished my internship and walked right into employment. I’m learning new things every day at my job and I owe it all to BTI.”

Your gift to BTI can give this “magical” experience to all of the participants.  Make it happen today!