A Shared Vision
How West Chester University and West Pharmaceutical Services are joining forces to drive the future of biomedical engineering.
The West Pharmaceutical Services global headquarters are located nine miles northwest of West Chester University — a quick 25-minute drive. West — a manufacturer of containment and delivery systems for injectable therapies — produces billions of components every year, to help the world’s top pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies deliver medicines to millions of patient across the globe on a daily basis.
Over the past two years, however, West has also formed a more local partnership with its neighbors at WCU. In addition to sharing a similar name and geography, the leading manufacturer has teamed up with the leading university to pursue a common mission: advancing biomedical engineering — and WCU student success.
The close collaboration began with the announcement of WCU’s new biomedical engineering program in 2018. Annette Favorite, who serves as West’s Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, as well as President of the Herman O. West Foundation, has served on the WCU President’s Corporate Advisory Board since 2017. West is also home to several WCU alumni.
As a pioneer in biomedical engineering, West agreed to name a lab in the new Sciences & Engineering Center. The company further cemented its support with several scholarships to attract talent to WCU’s new program, and one Women in Leadership and Service Scholarship to bolster student empowerment.
West employees have also contributed their time and professional expertise. In August, over 20 volunteers gathered to help students and families at Move-In Day. That fall, company representatives worked with WCU’s Career Development Center to cohost a Diversity Summit. In addition, Lawton E. Laurence, West’s Director of Radical and Disruptive Innovation, continues to provide valuable industry insights to the University’s Biomedical Engineering Advisory Board.
Most recently, West was named the first Corporate Honoree at the University’s 2019 President’s Circle Dinner. It is the latest result of a strategic partnership that allows West to support education in the community in which it operates — one of its core focus areas for corporate giving — while working closely with a leading university and its emerging innovators. The University has gained another corporate partner, one that helps to further its mission to develop graduates to succeed personally and professionally and contribute to the common good.