Pfizer Scientist Regular Visitor to BioBus

"Science isn't just textbooks, it's real people doing real things. And kids need to know that," says Ren Capunitan, 42, senior associate scientist at Pfizer in Groton, Conn. That's why he's volunteered as Visiting Scientist on Connecticut's BioBus more than half a dozen times in the past few years.

"The BioBus is great," Ren says. "Besides working with the kids, I get to meet their teachers. Best of all, I get to preach the gospel of science as a career, something I firmly believe in."

Ren came to science a little later in life than some. Although he has spent his entire career at Pfizer, he started out 23 years ago on the manufacturing side. But 13 years ago he took advantage of a Pfizer program that encouraged employees who wanted to re-train for scientific work. So at age 29, it was back to school for math and science courses at Three Rivers and the University of Connecticut Avery Point in a program leading to a lab certificate.

"My path was unusual, and I was lucky to be working for a company like Pfizer," Ren says. "For a career in science nowadays, you've got to start preparing early. You've got to awaken the kids' interest before they start high school, so they can begin taking the necessary science and math courses there."

If Ren started late in science, he is making up for it through a whirlwind of activity both inside and outside the lab. At Pfizer he works with over 200 other scientists in Groton in an analytical R&D group. His activities include developing methods such as HPLC (high performance liquid chromatography) for various projects and using a scanning electron microscope to evaluate pharmaceutical compounds.

Outside the lab, he's an active volunteer not only on the BioBus, but in Pfizer's SMART! K-12 educational outreach program. Along with more than 600 other volunteers, he will be representing Pfizer at SAMJAM, the science and math jamboree scheduled for May 5-7 in Groton-3,000 students are expected-and he is a coordinator for Great Futures in Chemistry, a program that brings promising high-school students into the Pfizer labs prior to their freshman year of college.

Ren's work as a role model for science continues at home in Lisbon, Conn., where he and his wife Cathleen are raising two boys-Darien, 9, and Bryce, 5. Ren works with Darien's class four or five times a year on science-related projects and has visited many of the area schools.

Is it all worthwhile? "Absolutely. Science is a great career, and I love what I'm doing," Ren says.