Thanks to a generous donation by Corban alumni Mark Newman and Andy Tyssen, Corban University’s science department is now in possession of a unique scientific instrument called a Gas Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometer.
Newman is the president and founder of Precision Analytical, Inc., a research laboratory located in nearby McMinnville, Oregon, that specializes in advanced comprehensive hormone testing. Newman brings expertise from the world of laboratory research, while co-owner and longtime friend, Andy Tyssen, serves as vice president, handling most of the financial aspects of the business.
“It’s always fun to come back to Corban,” says Tyssen, who can recall first meeting Newman as a young college freshman on Corban’s campus. “The memories I have here are amazing. It’s a privilege to be able to help the science program through this donation and interact with the students.” During their donation visit, Tyssen and Newman were greeted by Professor of Chemistry, Dr. Clinton Knaus, and a cohort of Corban biology majors, all eager to receive what Newman and Knaus agree is a vital instrument for research.
During their visit, Newman and Tyssen toured the science labs and interacted with Corban student researchers, hearing about their real-world research projects and presentations from examining the effects of sugar diets on hepatic gene expression to nanoparticle DNA tracing. Knaus and Newman are excited by the prospect for the new and expanded research opportunities that the mass spectrometer will offer to undergraduate students.
“Instrumentation is the practical application of theory,” Newman says. “A lot of students get lost in theory, but when you can take the theory and actually see it applied, that has the potential to change the trajectory of public health, and the trajectory of a student’s interests and career path. Instrumentation moves things from just concepts in a book to something real.”
Changing the trajectory of public health is something that is very close to Newman’s heart and the work he and Tyssen undertake at Precision Analytical. Their lab has pioneered a comprehensive hormone test called the D.U.T.C.H. test, seeking to offer a better understanding of how the complex interplay of hormones in the human body informs broader health concerns and offers more preventative and holistic solutions. “We are trying to ask the big ‘why’ questions pertaining to how hormones affect health or indicate potential problems,” says Newman. “We get to hear the cool stories of our test helping to impact the health trajectory of so many people,” Tyssen adds.
Tyssen and Newman are both grateful for their time at Corban, and the role it played in shaping their unexpected career trajectory. “It’s been such a blessing for me to have someone with integrity and hard work to take care of the business in the aspects I don’t have gifting at. It’s been fun to tackle and build it together over the years,” Newman says of Tyssen.
Standing in front of their newly donated instrument, surrounded by young and aspiring researchers, Newman couldn’t help but look back on his own experience as a college student, and the unexpected role his time at Corban played in his present. What began as shared moments working out in CE Jeffers Sports Center, to a brief stint as roommates after college, eventually produced a career partnership that neither expected, and a purpose and calling that allows them to give back, not only to the healthcare community, but to students just like they once were. “For some, it’s practical application that allows a student to find their passion,” he says. “If we can enhance that for some students, I think God uses many things to steer us along, and the practical application of science is what made things click for me.”
For his partner, Tyssen, the visit was a reminder of how much more is at play beneath the surface of a college experience, especially one at Corban University. “You forget how amazing this work is that Corban is doing in educating the next generation, not only in their disciplines, but in their values and walks with the Lord,” he says. “There aren’t many institutions in the country anymore that do that. It’s such a blessing and so fun to be a part of it.”