Microbiology Technician

CSU; Pomona (CA); On-site; USD 56,000 - 62,000; Full time

Job summary

Cal Poly Pomona is seeking an Instructional Laboratory Support Technician III in the Biological Sciences Department to provide microbiology teaching and research support. The role collaborates with faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates to maintain cultures and prepare labs.

Responsibilities include coordinating stockroom operations, ensuring safety compliance, and assisting in developing instructional materials and SOPs for cell culture and molecular biology labs.

Qualifications

• Equivalent to four years of experience providing instructional support services or related lab duties.
• Knowledge of microbiology lab materials, supplies, and their uses.
• Ability to plan, organize, and schedule work; operate and repair technical equipment.

Responsibilities

• Provide foundational and advanced lab support for microbiology courses and research.
• Maintain microbial cultures and tissue culture materials; ensure safety and compliance.
• Coordinate stockroom inventory and procurement for instructional laboratories.
• Train student assistants and graduate teaching associates in lab safety and procedures.
• Develop and refine SOPs for microbiology and cell culture operations.

Skills

Microbiology

Laboratory safety

Stockroom management

Equipment maintenance

Laboratory preparation

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Laboratory equipment

MS Office

Job description

Type of Appointment: Full-Time, Probationary

Job Classification: Instructional Support Technician III

Anticipated Hiring Range: $5,044-$5,569/monthly

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm

THE DEPARTMENT:

The primary functions of the Biological Sciences Department are (1) to provide the highest quality and up- to-date instruction at the undergraduate and graduate levels in a broad range of topics in the biological sciences; (2) to advance biological knowledge through research and creative scholarly and professional activities; (3) and to serve the university, local, and global communities. The Department serves over 1,200 undergraduate majors and over 90 graduate I (Master's) students. As of the 2013/14 academic year, the department faculty is composed of 22 full-time tenure-track faculty, 1 joint tenure-track appointment with CEMaST (Center for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching), 5 faculty in the early retirement program (FERP}, up to 29 part-time faculty per quarter (with a teaching load ranging from 1-15 WTUs per quarter), and up to 60 graduate teaching associates (with a teaching load of 4-8 WTUs per quarter). The Department has 3 administrative support staff and 6 full-time technical staff members, who collectively and in collaboration with the Department Chair and other faculty, oversee the activities of a few Graduate Assistants (GAs) and up to 20 student assistant's (per academic quarter) to carry out the teaching mission of the department. Consistent with the Cal Poly Pomona core value of "learn by doing", the curriculum offered by the Biological Sciences Department is laboratory intensive, providing the students with valuable experiential learning opportunities in order to prepare them for future careers. This aspect of our curriculum is essential to delivering a quality and modern biology education to our students. As part of its teaching mission, the Biological Sciences Department maintains a large selection of microorganisms (bacteria, fungi, and viruses) for its lower-division, upper-division, and graduate-level Microbiology classes. At the undergraduate level, these classes serve all four majors but, in particular, our Biology - Microbiology, Environmental Biology (Cluster 3), as well as Biotechnology majors. At the graduate level, these courses serve all our graduate (Master's) students. This position will be responsible for providing technical support to faculty and students in the area of microbiology teaching and research. This technician will work closely with faculty, other staff members, graduate teaching associates, graduate assistants, and undergraduate I student assistants to provide support for undergraduate and graduate classes, as well as for research purposes.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Instructional Laboratory Support

• Independently support laboratory preparation and instructional support for BIO 2060L, BIO 3620L, BIO 3640L, BIO 4360L, BIO 4635L, BIO 4650L, BIO 4670L, BIO 4680L, and BIO 4690L.
• Provide partial support for BIO 1110L, BIO 1150L, BIO 1210L, BIO 1220L, BIO 4660L, and other Biology instructional laboratories as assigned.
• Coordinate laboratory setup requirements with faculty and Teaching Associates (TAs), ensuring all instructional supplies, equipment, reagents, media, microbial cultures, tissue culture materials, specimens, PPE, and support resources are available for assigned laboratory classes and support other courses as needed.
• Assist instructors and students in preparing teaching laboratories with instructional materials for microbiology, molecular biology, and cell biology experiments.
• Organize and fulfill daily and weekly preparation requests by providing microbial cultures, tissue culture materials, media, solutions, reagents, laboratory supplies, specialized biological materials, and other instructional resources for teaching and research laboratories.
• Assist instructors in the development of new or modified laboratory courses and experiments.
• Maintain microbial cultures, tissue culture materials, and other biological resources to ensure their quality, viability, availability, and compliance with instructional and research laboratory standards.
• Laboratory Operations and Technical Services
• Evaluate laboratory materials, equipment, and procedures to optimize instructional quality, laboratory efficiency, and safety.
• Establish and/or refine Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for microbiology and cell culture operations based on university standards and best practices.
• Provide technical guidance in the preparation of microbiological media, tissue culture materials, laboratory solutions, reagents, and other instructional materials in accordance with established protocols and safety requirements.
• Maintain, troubleshoot, clean, calibrate, store, and prepare laboratory equipment and instrumentation used for microbiology, molecular biology, and cell biology instruction.
• Assist instructors with laboratory preparation sheets, laboratory manuals, and instructional support needs for assigned courses.

Facility Operations & Equipment Stockroom & Inventory Operations

• Maintain the Building 4 stockroom inventory of supplies, equipment, media, reagents, and biological materials required for supported instructional laboratories.
• Coordinate with other staff technicians in the Cellular and Molecular Biology (CMB) area, Central Biology Stockroom (4-2-557), Building 8 Stockroom, greenhouse, vivarium, and other biology work areas to ensure stockrooms remain fully operational and adequately supplied.
• Assist with stockroom coverage during business hours.
• Oversee the organization and operation of the microbiology preparation room to ensure efficient laboratory support for instructional activities serving more than 500 students each semester.
• Assist with the operations of the Cellular and Molecular Biology (CMB) Stockroom (4-2-774), including the Common Chemical Room, Flammable Chemical Room, preparation room, deep-freeze freezers, walk-in refrigerator, incubators, autoclaves, dishwasher, and related laboratory support facilities.
• Procurement, Vendors & Reporting
• Obtain vendor quotes and order instructional laboratory supplies, equipment, biological materials, replacement parts, and services using university purchasing systems while remaining within department budget.
• Reconcile vendor purchases and procurement transactions monthly.
• Serve as a primary contact with vendors and service providers to coordinate purchasing, deliveries, maintenance, and laboratory support services.

Equipment & Facilities

• Maintain responsibility for the care, operation, and maintenance of specialized microbiology, molecular biology, and tissue culture equipment used in instructional laboratories.
• Assist with laboratory renovations, equipment installations, and facility improvement projects supporting instructional operations.
• Attend department committee meetings related to equipment, laboratory operations, safety, and instructional exercises.
• Participate in professional development and technical training to remain current in laboratory safety, purchasing procedures, microbiological methods, and emerging instructional technologies.
• Safety Compliance Regulatory Compliance
• Maintain compliance with university, EH&S, Cal/OSHA, CUPA, and other applicable environmental, health, and safety regulations.
• Coordinate with EH&S regarding laboratory inspections, regulatory compliance activities, hazardous materials management, and laboratory renovations.
• Conduct laboratory and safety inspections; inspect instructional spaces and safety equipment; identify hazards, report incidents, and document corrective actions.
• Maintain student safety training records, laboratory inspection reports, incident documentation, and other regulatory compliance records.
• Waste Management & Biosafety
• Maintain biological and chemical waste inventories generated by instructional laboratories.
• Oversee the collection, labeling, storage, and disposal of biological waste, chemical waste, and sharps in collaboration with EH&S.
• Coordinate biohazardous waste decontamination by monitoring autoclave operations, documenting biological indicator (spore) testing, and maintaining compliance with university biosafety procedures.
• Maintain Safety Data Sheets (SDS), Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), biological inventories, and other laboratory compliance documentation.

Lead and Train Students

• Schedule and direct the daily work assignments of student assistants to ensure the microbiology stockroom operates efficiently, safely, and meets departmental instructional needs.
• Monitor the performance of student assistants and graduate Teaching Associates assigned to the area and provide feedback to the Chair/HEERA Manager.
• Train undergraduate and graduate student assistants in the safe handling, storage, maintenance, and disposal of microorganisms, tissue culture materials, laboratory equipment, and biological specimens.
• Track and verify student assistant work hours, maintain accurate timesheet records, and ensure compliance with university timekeeping procedures.
• Assist with the recruitment, onboarding, and training of student assistants, including participating in interviews and providing input on candidate selection.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Equivalent to four years of experience providing instructional support services for a related unit or discipline, or in producing materials or supplies or repairing equipment in a discipline related to specialty area to which assigned. or Equivalent to two years of college with 16 semester units in courses involving extensive use of materials, supplies, or equipment and in a discipline related to the area to which assigned may be substituted for one year of the required experience. or Equivalent to four years of college with 16 semester units in courses involving extensive use of materials, supplies, or equipment and in a discipline related to the specialty area to which assigned may be substituted for two years of the required experience
• Knowledge of the principles and methods related to performing support services; knowledge of the principles, information, methods and techniques related to discipline to which assigned; knowledge of the materials and supplies related to the curriculum, their characteristics, and uses.
• Ability to plan, organize and schedule work; ability to operate and repair technical and scientific equipment; ability to coordinate support service to meet a comprehensive variety of needs; ability to develop off-campus resources related to the discipline for obtaining materials or equipment.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree in Biological Science, Microbiology, Molecular Biology or closely related discipline.
• Cell/tissue culture training (hands-on)
• Hematology course
• Medical mycology course
• Post-baccalaureate training or experience in advanced microbiology, biological techniques or molecular biology is desirable.
• Ability to be proactive, recognize problems and needs and make modifications to lab situations to achieve desired outcome.
• Ability to work independently and handle multiple work priorities and projects, effectively handle a broad range of interpersonal contacts with the department, vendors, scientific companies, service personnel from facilities and the community.
• Ability to make a wide range of lab media, solutions, and reagents.
• Aseptic technique.
• Ability to write Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Computer literacy: Microsoft Office (Word, Excel), Windows operating systems.

Out of State Work

The California State University (CSU) system is a network of twenty-three public