Amgen: Forbes’ Company of Year

By Michael Picarella pic@theacorn.com

Forbes Magazine has picked Amgen as its 2004 Company of the Year.

The Thousand Oaks-based biotechnology leader was chosen from a field of 26 competitors using a composite score based on financial metrics that include growth in sales and earnings, leverage, stock market returns and earnings forecasts, the magazine said.

"Amgen is on the brink of a research renaissance that could yield more new drugs, in a broader range of diseases, than ever before," the magazine said in its Jan. 10 issue. "Taking aim at diabetes, arthritis, lupus, obesity and cancer, the biotech house now has 40 drugs in preclinical or patient trials, more than at any time in the company’s history and up from only 22 during the entire 1990s."

Amgen’s market capitalization is over $80 billion.

Amgen Award next

Locally, Amgen has long been recognized for its community leadership and the attention it pays to area educators.

The Amgen Award recognizes extraordinary science teachers who significantly impact students through exemplary science teaching and who achieve demonstrated results in student learning.

The company is now accepting nominations for the teachers who will be named in May.

Amgen will honor 19 outstanding science teachers from the United States and Puerto Rico at the 14th annual Amgen Award for Science Teaching Excellence in Los Angeles.

Awards will go to five teachers in California alone because more than half of Amgen’s employees are based in the state.

"We are proud to honor educators for their critical role in encouraging and inspiring students through innovative science-education programs, and equally proud to support schools in their efforts to expand science resources," said Madhu Balachandran, vice president of Puerto Rico Operations for Amgen Manufacturing Limited.

Amgen is committed to science education, officials said. The company established its teacher awards program in 1992 to promote and encourage science excellence in public and private schools.

Amgen has awarded more than $1 million to educators.

Amgen will award selected winners an unrestricted cash award of $2,500 to be used at the recipient’s discretion; a restricted $2,500 cash grant to the recipient’s school for the expansion or enhancement of a school science program, science resources, or for the professional development of the school’s science teachers; recognition at an awards banquet; and access to a forum with other Amgen award winners for sharing best practices.

An independent panel of judges will select winners based on creativity of teaching method, effectiveness in the classroom, motivational ability, instructional ability, and the plan for the use of grant money to improve science education resources in their schools.

Those interested in nominating an outstanding teacher should visit www.amgen.com/teacherawards.

Competition organizers ask that all nominations be postmarked by Jan. 31.

Nominated teachers must submit a brief narrative describing their creativity, effectiveness, motivational ability and instructional ability in the science classroom and how they would use the grant money to improve the science education in their schools.

Amgen will notify all winners by April.

For more information about Amgen, go to www.amgen.com.