Bio Nebraska and the Bio Nebraska Foundation, together with Marylinn Munson, today announced the recipients of the Marylinn Munson & Bio Nebraska STEM Scholarship for Nebraska high school students as they pursue relevant classroom study and professional experiences in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)-related fields. Scholarship recipients will each receive $2,500 in awards to be used towards tuition for the 2025-2026 academic year.
Bio Nebraska & Marylinn Munson STEM Scholarship Recipients
- Jaylee Sobotka, Tobias, Nebraska, will be attending Central Community College
- Joshua Oviedo Tinoco, Omaha, Nebraska, will be attending the University of Nebraska at Omaha
“It’s an honor to continue supporting the mission to empower the next generation of STEM leaders,” said Marylinn Munson, a biotechnology professional. “Fostering curiosity and innovation in scholars isn’t just a passion — it’s a long-term commitment to a more resilient, forward-thinking future.”
The scholarship was open to Nebraska high school seniors who plan to study a STEM-related field at a Bio Nebraska-approved college, community college, or university in Nebraska. Applicants must also intend to pursue a career within a STEM-focused industry.
“We’re honored to recognize these remarkable students and invest in their future,” said Rob Owen, Executive Director of Bio Nebraska. “The Bio Nebraska and Marylinn Munson STEM Scholarship reflects our dedication to growing Nebraska’s bioscience ecosystem. By supporting local talent, we’re helping secure the future strength and innovation of our industry right here at home.”
About Marylinn Munson
Marylinn Munson has worked in the life science, biotechnology and agriculture industries for more than 20 years. Currently she is on three Boards; Bio Nebraska Foundation, RAIN Incubator advancing STEM, and Recombinetics solving intractable challenges through gene editing. She has held international leadership roles at industry-leading biotech and life science companies. At Neogen she led the Genomics business; she managed the international genomics informatics field team at Qiagen; built and managed a field sales team and an international operations group where she was responsible for 60 percent of Illumina’s global business; and part of a Core Strategy Team, business development and marketing at Agilent. At Amersham Biosciences (GE Healthcare), she sold Next Generation Systems in North America, many of which were used as part of the Human Genome Project. Marylinn’s passion for excellence, people and customers has made her the recipient of industry awards including the Federal Labs Consortium Award for Technology Transfer. She is listed as an inventor on U.S. patents.
About the Bio Nebraska Foundation
The Bio Nebraska Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization focused on workforce development and education affiliated with Bio Nebraska. The Foundation aims to aid in the development of a highly educated and diverse Nebraska workforce by providing scholarships to Nebraska students and educational programming for professionals interested in advancing their careers in biosciences. Bio Nebraska is a nonprofit trade association tasked with supporting, promoting, and catalyzing the biosciences in Nebraska.
About Bio Nebraska
Founded in 2005, Bio Nebraska is a non-profit trade association dedicated to supporting and promoting Nebraska’s bioscience sector and ensuring the sector grows and thrives. Bio Nebraska is the only organization in the state representing over 100 bio-related entities in the human health, medical device, animal health, agriculture, renewable fuels and industrial biotech sectors, as well as educational institutions and service providers.