FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Nicole Joy Hales, PRfirst, 617-947-7983, nhales@prfirst.com
BioConnects New England Announces Alicia Modestino, Ph.D. as Co-Lead
BOSTON, BURLINGTON, WORCESTER, GLOUCESTER, WALTHAM, MA; PROVIDENCE, SOUTH KINGSTOWN, RI; PORTLAND, ME; ISSUED FEBRUARY 9, 2022…BioConnects New England, a multi-state coalition and finalist of the Build Back Better Regional Challenge, a $1 billion program sponsored by the Economic Development Administration, announces that Dr. Alicia Modestino is serving as co-lead of this coalition, along with Dr. Jared Auclair.
Through this initiative, BioConnects New England intends to build on the early success of the biotechnology industry, one of the fastest-growing sectors in New England with national importance, to create a biomanufacturing cluster that includes low- and moderate-income communities throughout Massachusetts, Maine, and Rhode Island that have been historically left behind during previous economic recoveries.
Modestino’s expertise in regional economics, labor economics, housing, workforce development, health economics, inequality, social policy, economic development, economic impacts of biomanufacturing, and inclusion-focused economic development will bring a specific and integral perspective to this effort.
Modestino is an associate professor with appointments in the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs and the Department of Economics at Northeastern University, where she also serves as the research director of the Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy. She is a research fellow at the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government’s Women and Public Policy Program, a non-resident fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program, and an affiliated research of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) at MIT.
Prior to joining Northeastern, Modestino was a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, where she led research projects on regional economic and policy issues for over a decade. In this role, Modestino advised policymakers and business leaders, and also testified on key pieces of legislation related to labor market policies.
Modestino holds both a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University, where she also served as a doctoral fellow in the Inequality and Social Policy Program at the Kennedy School of Government.
“Our coalition’s goal of creating a robust biomanufacturing industry in the region will create positive impacts for our economy and, most importantly, for the people who are looking to transition into one of the area’s most successful and well-funded sectors,” said Modestino.
ABOUT BIOCONNECTS NEW ENGLAND
BioConnects New England is a multi-state coalition and finalist of the Build Back Better Regional Challenge—a $1 billion program sponsored by the Economic Development Administration. Through this initiative, BioConnects New England intends to build on the early success of the biotechnology industry, one of the fastest-growing sectors in New England with national importance, to create a biomanufacturing cluster that includes low- and moderate-income communities throughout Massachusetts, Maine, and Rhode Island that have been historically left behind during previous economic recoveries. This coalition will connect hubs throughout New England to support existing—and establish new—biomanufacturing infrastructure as a pathway to increase employment and educational opportunities for underserved regions and populations.
Massachusetts-based Northeastern University leads the BioConnects New England Coalition, which includes the Biopharmaceutical Analysis Training Laboratory at Northeastern University (Burlington, Mass.), the Roux Institute at Northeastern University (Portland, Maine), Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (Waltham, Mass.), Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, the I-195 Design & Innovation District (Providence, R.I.), and the University of Rhode Island, located in South Kingstown.
For more information about BioConnects New England, please email team@jareda11.sg-host.com or visit https://bioconnectsne.com or @bioconnectsNE on Twitter or Instagram.
