Greetings! I’m the program chair for the Radiation and Imaging Sciences (RAIS) program. I don’t teach many of the courses in the RAIS curriculum, so you may not encounter me in a class until you reach your Capstone Proposal and Project courses, or if you do an Independent Study. If you’re a certificate or clinical student, you may not have any opportunities to interact with me. So I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce myself.
I graduated from Whitman College, a small liberal arts college in Walla Walla, WA, with a degree in biology and chemistry. By chance I applied and was accepted into a one-year certificate program in nuclear medicine technology. I had no idea what nuclear medicine was, but it turned out to be a great field for me, and I worked as a clinical tech for 20 years, at Providence Hospital in Seattle (now Swedish Cherry Hill) and Virginia Mason Medical Center.
Early on in my career, I got involved in the Seattle University nuclear medicine technology program, and discovered that I really love teaching. I earned a Master of Science degree in Radiological Sciences at the University of Washington, during which time Seattle U. announced the closing of the program. I was then in a position to start a new program for nuclear medicine technologists at Bellevue College. To begin with, I directed the program while working as a staff technologist at Virginia Mason, and had only a few students per year. In 2003, with an increasing demand for NMTs, I became full-time faculty at BC.
Then-BC president Jean Floten was the chief proponent of a proposal to the state legislature to allow community colleges to award bachelor’s degrees, and I was directly involved in the original design of the RAIS program. A great deal of work was done in the program’s first 10 years to mold it into its current form, so I assumed leadership of a well-developed, superbly run program. While my own background is specific to nuclear medicine, I have a broad understanding of the radiology field thanks to my many years in the field. I am supported by excellent faculty and a terrific program manager. I am also the college’s Radiation Safety Officer, and as such will be the one issuing radiation dosimeters if you need one for a clinical practicum.
I look forward to working with you! It is especially gratifying to teach the Capstone courses, and to see students’ dreams for their careers coming true. The RAIS program is demanding, but the effort you put in will pay off as you find new avenues opening up thanks to your bachelor’s degree. Don’t hesitate to contact me. I’m happy to assist you in any way I can.
