Speaker Information

Update on Patient Shielding
Provide an update on patient shielding including the NCRP statement on shielding, which is still in committee but should be published by the time of the conference.

Darcy Wolfman, M.D., FACR, FSRU
Darcy J. Wolfman, MD is a Clinical Associate and Clinical Director of Ultrasound in the National Capital Division of the Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Washington, DC. Dr. Wolfman is a board-certified abdominal imager whose expertise is in ultrasound, oncology and genitourinary imaging. Dr. Wolfman is involved with multiple national organizations including serving as a Trustee for the ARRT, as a member of the AAPM Communicating Advances in Radiation Education for Shielding (CARES) committee and as a member of the SC 4-13 NCRP committee on Patient Shielding in Medical Imaging. Dr. Wolfman is a fellow of the American College of Radiology and the Society of Radiologists in Ultrasound.

Keynote Open Forum
As part of the celebration of our professional community, the leaders of the JRCERT, ASRT, and ARRT will be hosting an open forum to discuss the topics of the day, the challenges facing the profession, and answer your questions.

Leslie F. Winter, M.S., R.T.(R)
Leslie is a native of northwestern Illinois. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Physical Education degree from Western Illinois University. She then enrolled in the radiography program at Triton College and earned an Associate in Allied Health degree. After becoming certified by the ARRT she was employed at Sherman Hospital in Elgin as a CT technologist. Leslie continued her education and earned a Master of Science in Health Administration degree from the College of St. Francis in Joliet, IL.

Leslie served as a didactic instructor for the College of DuPage and also served as a board member on the college’s Educational Review Committee. In 1987, Leslie became the program director at St. Joseph’s Hospital School of Radiologic Technology. In 1995, she joined the JRCERT and currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer.

Leslie was honored to receive the Professional Excellence Award, the Recognition for Recruitment and Retention of Health Careers Award, and the Outstanding Public Service Recognition Award from the State of Illinois Department of Public Health. Leslie travels throughout the United States presenting lectures on educational topics and believes programmatic accreditation in the radiologic sciences is the best way to assure patient safety.

Keynote Open Forum
As part of the celebration of our professional community, the leaders of the JRCERT, ASRT, and ARRT will be hosting an open forum to discuss the topics of the day, the challenges facing the profession, and answer your questions.

Liana Watson, D.M., R.T.(R)(M)(S)(BS), RDMS, RVT, FASRT, CAE
Dr. Watson is a certified association executive and medical imaging professional that provides support to medical imaging professionals. She currently holds the position of CEO with the ARRT and has worked for the ARRT since 2017. Prior to her work with ARRT she served in several leadership positions with the ASRT and ASRT Foundation. Dr. Watson earned her CAE in 2015 and has been a volunteer for ASAE since 2012. She earned a doctorate in management and organizational leadership from the University of Phoenix in 2007. Dr. Watson’s positions with the ARRT and ASRT follow a 25-year career as a medical imaging professional and department director in a rural referral health care center in western Nebraska. She has served as an active volunteer for both the ASRT and ASRT Foundation for many years and is a published author.

The Good, the Bad, and AI/ChatGPT Impacts on Allied Health Student Learning, Academic Integrity, and Professionalism
A myriad of concerns, arguments, and discussions have recently surfaced in the educational world since the launch of ChatGPT for public use. The presenters will share how AI may impact academic integrity within allied health student learning. Authentic assessments, exploration of improved learning processes, and how the creation of policies and procedures within higher education can hold students accountable towards transparency will also be discussed.

Julie Lasley, Ph.D., R.T.(R)(T)
Dr. Julie Lasley is currently a program director and associate professor for the Northern Kentucky University (NKU) radiation therapy program. During her 25 years as an educator, she has published articles in the Radiologic Technologist, Radiation Therapist, and AEIRS. She has presented on various topics with the professional societies. Recently, Dr. Lasley served for six years on the JRCERT Board of Directors, two of those years as board chair. She also participated in the JRCERT Standards revision committee and is currently an active JRCERT site visitor. In her spare time, she is an avid YOGI and enjoys hiking, biking, and reading good fiction.

Lisa Schmidt, Ph.D., R.T.(R)(M), CRT
Dr. Lisa Schmidt is currently the senior program director for the Pima Medical Institute Radiography Program located in Chula Vista, California. For over 25 years her responsibilities have included program development and measured growth, instruction, student mentoring, curriculum design/revision, administration, and providing program director/faculty mentoring, education, and training. In 2020, Dr. Schmidt became a member of the California Department of Public Health Radiologic Technology Certification Committee (RTCC) and is currently serving her second term. She has also served on various sub-committees for the RTCC to include review of the California fluoroscopy exam, and the California Department of Public Health Radiologic Health Branch Standards for Radiologic Technology. Commencing in 2017, Dr. Schmidt served for six years on the JRCERT Board of Directors, participated in the JRCERT Standards revision committee, and is currently an active JRCERT site visitor since 2008, serving as team chair. Throughout her career, she has presented on a variety of topics at various conferences to include AEIRS, CSRT, WSRT, and Kaiser’s Annual Educational Symposium, and has published articles in the ASRT Radiologic Technologist Journal. In her spare time Dr. Schmidt is an avid golfer for leisure and competition, enjoys traveling to play new golf courses, likes to hike, relax at the beach, spend time with family, friends, and Julietta, her cat.

Building Resilience in School of Health Professions Students with Sudarshan Kriya Yoga
College students are under an enormous amount of stress with a greater prevalence of mental health issues than any other age group (Art of Living, 2020). About 60% of students reported feeling overwhelmed with anxiety (Art of Living, 2020). There’s a need to support mental wellness on college campuses. Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) a breathing technique was offered to SHP students as part of the SKY Campus Happiness Retreat. Goals are to enhance mental wellness, resilience & empower students to become leaders by addressing core issues of handling stress through powerful holistic methods. The retreat was taught over 3 consecutive sessions in the evenings, 3 hours each. 17 participants representing science programs attended the retreat in 2022. 26 participants attended a 2nd retreat as a follow-up study in 2023. Survey was conducted at the end with positive responses. Questions were based on experience using Likert scale. Although retreat was offered online, participants were engaged in bonding with peers from other programs. The retreat is unique in teaching evidence based breathing practices to reduce stress which can be integrated in the campus life community. Plans are to incorporate the retreat as part of New Student Orientation. Presenter will introduce and teach attendees a breathwork technique and take them through a guided meditation exercise.

Delores Whiteing, Ph.D., D.H.Sc., M.H.A., R.T.(T)
Delores Whiteing is the Education Coordinator for the 2-Year BS Program in Radiation Therapy at UT MD Anderson Cancer Center-School of Health Professions where she provides didactic and clinical instruction to radiation therapy students. Delores earned her Bachelor of Science in Radiation Therapy from Howard University. She obtained a Master of Healthcare Administration, Doctor of Health Science, and Ph.D. in Leadership for Higher Education. She has been a certified radiologic technologist through the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists for over 20 years. Her research interests include student retention, pedagogy best practices, simulation training, student wellness, learning outcomes, student success and motivation, positive engagement, peer connectedness, and teacher relatability. Delores is a site visitor Team Member for JRCERT. She enjoys watching squirrels play and putting together jigsaw puzzles! Delores promotes wellness initiatives for faculty, staff, and students. She is a Certified SKY Wellness Coach and has led Wellness Sessions for SHP.

Empowering Educators to Embrace and Expound on Informatics in the Classroom
The integration of informatics and imaging significantly impacts how medical imaging professionals care for patients. This presentation will provide an overview of imaging informatics with a focus on empowering the radiologic and imaging science educator to incorporate the content into their curricula and across the various imaging modalities. Participants will be guided through an understanding of imaging informatics topics – such as information systems (i.e. HIS/RIS/EMR/EHR), digital image displays, archives, PACS/MIMPS, security and networking, and artificial intelligence. The similarities and differences of imaging informatics across the modalities will be highlighted as this is a key to understanding the significance of how patient centered care is impacted and continues to evolve.

Kori Stewart, Ph.D., R.T.(R)(CT), CIIP
Dr. Stewart is Director of the Radiologic Sciences Program and Associate Professor of Diagnostic Imaging at Quinnipiac University, and has been a dedicated educator and technologist since 2009. She holds certifications in Radiography, Computed Tomography and Imaging Informatics, and has a BS in Diagnostic Imaging and MHS in Medical Laboratory Sciences from Quinnipiac, and a PhD in Biomedical Informatics from Rutgers University. She is co-author of the 8th Edition of “Introduction to Radiologic & Imaging Sciences & Patient Care”, upcoming 1st Edition of “An Introduction to Imaging Informatics” which will be released in March 2025, and sole author of an Informatics in Medical Imaging textbook chapter. She has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and presented internationally, nationally and regionally on Imaging Informatics and patient-centered care and has a passion for advancing the profession.

Certification Exam Scoring and Standard Setting
This session is a crash course in certification exam scoring. We will cover the methods used to calculate passing thresholds, how to interpret score reports, and the process for setting new passing standards. We will also reference reports published by the ARRT and how educators can use them to interpret program-level statistics.

Zachary Siegel, Ph.D.
Zachary Siegel holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology and Human Computer Interaction from Iowa State University and currently serves as the Psychometrics Manager for the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists. His research interests include exam validity, cognitive modeling, computerized adaptive testing, and virtual reality applications.

Thinking Outside of the Line: Neurodivergent Individuals in Radiography
This presentation will cover the definition of neurodivergence and explain why it includes a broad array of conditions. Additionally, the presentation will discuss the importance of recognizing behaviors that may indicate the need for adaptive communication skills and encourage discussion of best practices for providing holistic care for these individuals in radiography.

Jamie S. Tucker, Ed.D., R.T.(R)(CT)
Dr. Jamie Tucker is a Radiology Educator with over twenty years of experience. While most of her professional career was spent teaching at colleges across the state of Texas, she currently serves as the Program Director for Radiography at Trinity College of Nursing & Health Sciences in Rock Island, Illinois. Dr. Tucker graduated from a hospital-based program in Springfield, Missouri and credits that experience for her active approach to teaching and learning. Jamie serves as a JRCERT site visitor as a Team Chair and has served the profession in that capacity for several years. Her scholarly interests include simulation techniques, diversity and inclusion in medical imaging, and how societal changes influence healthcare communication.

Creating Community and Engagement in Online Classes
Developing strong online courses takes considerable planning, thought, and time. Merely taking the content from a face-to-face class and posting it in a learning management system is not adequate. This presentation will examine ways to develop courses that will motivate students and create a sense of community. Activities and technology tools will be discussed. Finally, strategies to help students be successful and persist will be provided.

Laura Aaron, Ph.D., R.T.(R)(M)(QM), FASRT, FAEIRS
Dr. Laura Aaron is a professor and the graduate coordinator for the Master of Science in Radiologic Sciences program at the Northwestern State University School of Allied Health. She also serves as the Assistant to the Provost for the Graduate School at NSU.

Dr. Aaron has been very active in several radiologic sciences professional organizations, including the ASRT, AEIRS, JRCERT, and her state society, LSRT.

Laura loves working with students to help them achieve their career goals, collaborating with the fabulous faculty she works with daily, and tackling new challenges. She and her husband, Cary, love to travel and enjoy spending time with their friends and family and watching an LSU football game. Go Tigers!

Assuring Quality in Student Learning Outcome Assessment: Checking all the Boxes
Student learning outcome (SLO) assessment is an essential component of quality improvement and a requirement in accreditation standards for educational programs. While the assessment tools, their implementation, and analysis are unique to each program, the steps in the process of assessment are common. A checklist of these common steps will be presented including applications for how it can be used to ensure a high-quality process that meets accreditation standards.

Tracy Herrmann, Ph.D., R.T.(R)
Dr. Tracy Herrmann is an Associate Dean and Professor of Allied Health at the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College. She completed her undergraduate education in radiologic technology at The Ohio State University and then earned a Master of Education degree in health education and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in educational studies at the University of Cincinnati with a concentration in educational policy and higher education. At UC, she has held leadership positions as the Chair of the faculty senate and as Associate Dean. Dr. Herrmann is a past president of the Ohio Society of Radiologic Technologists and the Association of Educators in Imaging and Radiologic Sciences. She has also served as a JRCERT site visitor, board member, and board chair. Her recent professional interests are in cultural humility, student engagement, and assessment.

Using Reflective Practice to Develop Critical Thinking in Students and Technologists
Reflective practice is a term coined by Donald Schon in the 1980s, which is based in the idea that practitioners should think about what they are doing while they are doing it. Reflective practice is based on identifying a problem and devising ways to address the problem, thereby formulating best practice. It results in the development of profession practice into professional artistry. Reflecting before, during, and after action, lends the ability to evaluate one’s practice critically, thereby reducing errors. When applied didactically and in the clinic, reflective practice can be used to develop critical thinking in students and technologists.

Sean Richardson, Ed.D., R.T.(R)(CT)
Dr. Sean Richardson is an internationally educated and experienced, patient-centered medical imaging practitioner. He is the program director and professor of radiography at JFK Muhlenberg School of Radiography in New Jersey. He also works as a part-time computed tomography technologist. Dr. Richardson holds a diploma in radiography from the University of Guyana, a bachelor’s in technology-diagnostic radiography from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa, a MSc – radiographic image interpretation and a PG certificate in clinical education from Charles Sturt University, Australia, and a doctorate in education-higher education from the University of Liverpool, England. He is credited for designing the current BSc in medical imaging curriculum at his alma mater, the University of Guyana. He has presented at numerous ASRT, ISRRT conferences, and recently at RSNA 2023. Sean is currently a body member of the NJSRT. Dr Richardson enjoys traveling having visited over 100 countries. He is also a certified personal trainer.

Maximizing Microlearning
Whether for online or in-person use, microlearning supports the tenents of andragogy, while aiding in augmenting, supplementing, developing, and remediating the student’s performance. From reinforcing key concepts, honing identification and recall capabilities, to shaping critical thinking and communication skills, microlearning as a method promotes active engagement of the student and personalizes the educational experience.

Robyn A. Defelice, Ph.D.
Robyn A. Defelice, PhD is a learning intrapreneur, author, and presenter with over 20 years in the L&D field. She is the co-author of Microlearning: Short and Sweet and has been researching How Long Does it Take to Develop Training for over a decade. Robyn’s passion comes from working with L&D leadership and teams to get them to the decision-making table. She is fueled by her mission to empower L&D professionals at all levels of an organization and industries. From corporate to manufacturing, government to higher education, and non-profits to startups, Robyn’s diverse experiences provide her clients with original, yet pragmatic solutions.