Protecting Patient Lives

Our Mission

Quality Champions for Life is blazing a trail of excellence and is inviting everyone to join. Together we are preparing the next generation of students to take their place in the Life Science industry as champions of trusted quality outcomes for the betterment of patients around the world. Imagine every product being right, being available and changing lives!

In a world steeped with rapid technological innovation, our students are excelling as they are armed with the critical thinking skills needed to make scientifically sound, quality-based decisions. Through our mission, students are grounded in an understanding of “why,” so they have the confidence needed to navigate uncharted territory with agility, awareness and competence. Since every decision could impact patient health and safety, the ability to address challenges through a disciplined, clear, rational, and open-minded approach that is informed by evidence, context and impact is more critical now than ever.

In 2018, the Pathway for Patient Health Chief Quality Officer Forum chartered the creation of the Quality Science Education Program. Why? During this timeframe, deep discussions were occurring between industry representatives and FDA officials on how to increase the strength of a company’s culture of quality. As the Chief Quality Officer Team collaborated on ways to move quality ownership beyond the Quality Department, the team recognized the paradigm shifting opportunity to create an army of quality champions by teaching students the “why” behind product, process and systems quality before they join our industry.

Desired Outcome: When the Quality Science Education students join the Life Science industry, they will go into positions that match their interests and educational background. Those positions include R&D, Tech Ops, Supply Chain, Business, Engineering, Quality, Regulatory Affairs, Clinical Trials and Sales (to name a few). Through this process of developing Quality Champions, we will organically grow the ownership of quality beyond the Quality Department.

Critical Decision we Made: From the beginning, we decided that everything we do must be 100% fully funded so there are no expenses for the students and universities we support. We want nothing to get in their way!

Pathway funded the infrastructure, staff, content development and programs through two mechanisms:

1. Time was donated in developing over 97 hours of course content. Marla Phillips (CEO and President of Pathway) led the development of this content, and engaged wonderful industry professional subject matter experts to join her (check out the Course Development Experts on our Volunteer Page). Thank you to these experts for their time, talent and passion!

2. Corporate Membership funding was used to cover monetary expenses. Companies join the Pathway Corporate L&D Program to have access to (1) all the courses for professional L&D, and (2) the Hiring Platform to hire Quality Science Education students for internships and employment.

In 2019, the Quality Science Education Program was launched as a pilot at Xavier University for the Fall semester. 13 students enrolled in the first course, led by Associate Professor Dr. Barbara Hopkins of the Xavier Chemistry Department. These students became aware of careers they never knew existed, and engaged in critical thinking with curiosity throughout the program.

Imagine: Students were being asked to figure out how to proactively design risk out of the product, process and system so that the product would not fail. But even further, they incorporated intel from user needs, a fit-for-purpose approach, regulatory expectations, unintended consequences, critical quality attributes, business implications of contracting the work, and so much more.

Proof of Concept: The Xavier pilot demonstrated the value of the Quality Science Education Program for interview selection, interview performance and on-the-job awareness that has caught the attention of companies around the world!

In just 5 years, students from the Quality Science Education program have joined over 80 life science companies such as Abbott, Amgen, Boston Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb, Cook Medical, Eli Lilly, GSK, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Siemens Healthineers, Thermo Fisher Scientific and Zoetis (a Pfizer subsidiary) - just to name a few.

Once the students join the program and start taking courses, they have the opportunity to join the Hiring Platform so they can create profiles for internship and employment opportunities. Our initial vision recognized the criticality of not only teaching the students, but helping them to be found…and helping industry to find them. Only students with the Quality Science Education background are allowed into this platform, thus assuring hiring managers that anyone they choose from the platform will have this advanced understanding of product, process and systems quality.

In the first 5 years (Fall 2019 - Fall 2024), the vision of reaching students around the world quickly became a reality. Pathway began offering the Quality Science Education courses for open enrollment in Spring 2020, and continues offering them every Spring, Summer and Fall semester. Enrollment costs are covered by a 100% scholarship for each student, which enables any student to take the program through Pathway from any school and any country. As a result, enrollment has grown from the pilot group of 13 Xavier University students to over 1,250 students from 275 universities on 5 continents! Check out the schools from which our students come: QSE Student Global Schools.

Additionally, the following 16 schools have offered the program for academic credit during this same timeframe: California State University Channel Islands, Clemson University, Concordia University, St. Paul, Earlham College, Fayetteville State University, Georgia State University, La Salle University, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Rutgers University, Saint Cloud State University, Technological University of Dublin, The Wistar Institute, University of Dayton, University of Minnesota Duluth, Western New England University, and Xavier University.

Each school is surrounded by a volunteer team of support, depending on the needs of the professor who is leading the course at that university. Since the Quality Science Education program is steeped in “this is how we do this” type of teaching, schools can offer the program through the on-demand (asynchronis) recordings taught by industry professionals, or have industry professionals join the class on-campus, or online live. On top of that support, professors often request help in grading the homework assignments and exams due to the industry knowledge needed. Again, Pathway has coordinated volunteer teams who have so generously donated their time and talent. Check out the university support on our Volunteer Page, and consider joining us!

In 2023, Abdiel Alvarez (Vice President Quality & Compliance at Johnson & Johnson MedTech Vision) recognized the value in preparing students to join our industry, and advocated for the J&J WiSTEM2D Program (Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, Manufacturing and Design) to collaborate with Pathway. By forging this partnership, the J&J WiSTEM2D volunteers have raised global awareness of the Quality Science Education Micro-Credential opportunity, and students continue enrolling each semester.

Pathway’s goal of reaching as many students as possible is accelerated through several Strategic Partnerships. (In the first 5 years, students have participated from 42 different countries!). In addition to the J&J WiSTEM2D Program, the following partnerships have helped spur our growth and reach:

1. The Wistar Institute: The Wistar Institute is the oldest, independent, biomedical research institute in the country, and prepares high school, undergraduate and graduate students, as well as pre-apprentices, apprentices and postdoctoral fellows for the Life Science industry. Through a grant awarded to the Wistar Institute by the Department of Economic Development, the Quality Science Pathway Apprenticeship (QSPA) was created. Read more on our Partnership Page!

2. City Tutors of New York City: The City Tutors is a free, on-demand NYC-wide learning and career center for students in New York City. Pathway has partnered with City Tutors by raising awareness of the free Quality Science Education Program to their students, as well as engaging them in the Hiring Platform and Mentorship Program. Pathway has enjoyed live web-sessions with City Tutors, hosted by “3rd Rock” TV Star “Dot Com”. Read more on our Partnership Page!

3. Disability:IN: Disability:IN is the leading nonprofit resource for business disability inclusion worldwide, and is supported by the CEOs of over 500 corporations around the world. Pathway has been pleased to increase the awareness of the free Quality Science Education program to all individuals who are interested in lifelong careers in the Life Science industry. Read more on our Partnership Page!

Thank you to our partners, and let us know if you would like to discuss partnering with us too! (Contact Us)

The Launch of a Non-Profit:

Pathway recognized after 4 years of solid growth, interest and impact that it was time to think bigger. By moving the philanthropic work of Pathway into a non-profit structure, the Quality Science Education Program would be able to grow exponentially through charitable donations and increased volunteerism. So on September 25, 2023, the concept of “Quality Champions for Life” was born!

• On September 25, 2023 Pathway for Patient Health moved its philanthropic work with students and universities into a new non-profit organization filed in the State of Ohio as “Quality Champions for Life”.

• On January 16, 2024 the Quality Champions for life Board of Directors met for the first time and established the Initial Articles of Incorporation.

• On August 20, 2024, the IRS gave Quality Champions for Life its 501(c)(3) designation - enabling tax deductible donations (as allowed by law) to support the Quality Champions mission.

FAQ’s

• Why the name: “Quality Champions for Life”? Because that is exactly what we are creating - Quality Champions…for life. Students will become champions of quality for (1) patient lives, and (2) for their lifelong careers!

• Why a Non-Profit? By creating a non-profit organization, charitable donations can now support the philanthropic work we are doing, and fuel our growth so that we can include all students who want to participate.

• How can I become involved? Involvement can come in many forms, and thank you in advance for your interest! Please consider these possible ways to support the success of the program, and let us know if you have other ideas:

  • Give of your Time: Consider joining the ranks of industry professionals who are supporting university professors who are leading this program at their schools, grading homework assignments and exams, joining student virtual sessions to share your career journey and mentoring a student.

  • Give of your Talent: If you have a passion for teaching, please consider teaching already-prepared materials to an online live class of students at a university. You can listen to the video, then use our slides to engage them in the learning. We support you the whole way.

  • Give of your Treasure: Charitable donations of any amount go a long way as we run a lean and efficient process (keeping Quality Systems close to our hearts!). Your donation can help us teach another student!

• What is the relationship between Pathway and Quality Champions? Pathway is the philanthropic arm of Quality Champions - donating the course content offered to students, providing charitable contributions to fund the infrastructure and programs, and developing strategies for growth and sustainability.

If you would like to learn more about ways to engage with us in our mission, please Contact Us today.