The Ohio Life Sciences Institute has secured $1.5 million in first-ever state capital budget funding for the Ohio Life Science Training Center, a facility that will train biotech operators and technicians for pharmaceutical manufacturing jobs across the state.

The City of Mason Economic Development office celebrated the investment on Sunday, writing on X that the training center is "an asset for biohealth momentum across the state" and that "Mason's mission to grow best-in-class life science companies will be upleveled" by the center.

The $1.5 million is the first state capital appropriation for the center, which is part of a broader public-private initiative with up to $30 million in planned investment, according to a sponsored article published by Fierce Biotech on Sunday. The sources and timeline for the remaining investment have not been detailed publicly.

The center's initial focus will be training workers to operate in FDA-regulated environments. Eddie Pauline, CEO of the Ohio Life Sciences Association, said in the sponsored Fierce Biotech piece that Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) training is "a sort of first priority for the center," along with manufacturing foundations and lab techniques. Graduates will earn a portable industry certificate.

The training center will be headquartered in the Columbus area, with partnerships with universities, community colleges and technical schools forming a statewide network. Tyler Allchin, managing director of healthcare at JobsOhio, called it "a statewide solution" accessible to workers in all 88 Ohio counties.

That statewide reach is what connects the center to Mason. The city holds one of only three Premier Life Science Ready Community designations in Ohio, alongside New Albany and Mentor, according to the Ohio Life Sciences Association. The City of Mason Economic Development office says 80% of new investment in Mason is in biohealth and biotech, though no timeframe for that figure has been specified.

No opening date or enrollment timeline for the Ohio Life Science Training Center has been announced.