New advancements in technology seem to appear more and more often, changing the way we live with the intention to improve all aspects of every day life.

These developments go beyond bigger, clearer televisions and the ability to decrease wrinkles without going under the knife. Advancements in medical and biological technology are just as prominent.

Alejandro Calderon-Urrea, Ph. D., and biotechnology professor at Fresno State, plays a large role in keeping this field growing. He received the Andreoli Biotechnology Service Award in January for his help in increasing the biotechnology workforce in California.

“Yes, we need doctors, a lot of them, but we also need scientists,” Calderon-Urrea said.

The Andreoli Award is presented by the California State University Program for Education and Research in Biotechnology (CSUPERB), to a professor of the CSU system in recognition of their contributions to biotechnology.

It is named after Dr. A. Andreoli, a professor from California State University, Los Angeles, who was a leading advocate in the field.

Calderon-Urrea, who was born in Colombia, has studied across the nation and worldwide. He received his Ph.D. from Yale and conducted his postgraduate work at UC Berkeley. It was at Berkeley that Calderon-Urrea decided he wanted to teach.

“It’s really exciting when you see something click [in a student’s mind],” Calderon-Urrea said.

He did not want to give up research, however, so he applied to Fresno State with the intention to teach and conduct research simultaneously, and has been doing just that since 1997. He saw potential here in the Central Valley and wanted to give students an opportunity he thought they were missing out on.

“You learn a lot more in the lab than from a book, especially in science,” Calderon-Urrea said.

Calderon-Urrea has continued to work with professors at Yale University and has sent seven Fresno State students to the Science, Technology, and Research Scholars (STARS) program to do laboratory research in genomics and bioinformatics.

In the summer of 2007, Calderon-Urrea sent four people to participate in the elite program. They were there for two months doing experiments, lab work and presentations.

Jacqueline Ma, a biology major with an emphasis in physiology and anatomy, was one of the four who participated and said the opportunity was one she couldn’t afford to miss.

“It was a valuable opportunity for me to experience other fields of research in different facilities other than Fresno State,” Ma said.

Melany Rose Klauser, a biomedical physics major, said she appreciated the new perspective she received from conducting research on her own in a molecular biology lab. With a background in math and physics, it was a different experience.

“I gained so much lab experience that I can continue to apply in my education and career,” Klauser said.

Calderon-Urrea also helps run the Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE) Program at Fresno State, which intends to increase the number of students in the biomedical industry. It is an advanced program at Fresno State that accepts students based not only on their academic standings, but also their potential. Calderon-Urrea said the program is for people who can survive working together in a research environment and “is not for sissies.”

His research focuses on nematodes that feed off plants. He is looking for an alternative to pesticides to control pests in crops. This research is a large part of Claderon-Urrea’s focus, but students are his top priority.

“Dr. Calderon-Urrea has never refused to offer advice when seeked, or to provide such wonderful experiences as Yale. In other words, Dr. Calderon does everything he can to help his students, and his students exist all over campus, beyond his actual biology courses,” Klauser said.