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Greetings from the Division of Clinical Laboratory Science! 

In September 2017, an external review team visited the Division of CLS to review the CLS and MDS programs. The review team noted many strengths of the programs including:

  • Highest NAACLS accreditation ratings for both programs
  • Excellent outcomes on certification examinations and job placements
  • Qualifications, productivity, and commitment of the CLS faculty
  • External grant funding
  • Support from clinical sites and corporate partners
  • Clinical instructors’ and employers’ satisfaction with the programs
  • Successful and supportive program alumni
  • Curricula that prepare graduates for professional life in the 21st century

The reviewers had two main suggestions for the CLS and MDS programs. They thought that we should have more advanced automated equipment in the student laboratory and that we should increase enrollment in the MDS program. The CLS faculty spent the past year discussing these recommendations. Because our excellent clinical sites provide students with many opportunities to work with cutting-edge automation, the faculty did not see the need to add more automation to the student laboratory. We did agree with the reviewers’ recommendations to increase enrollment in the master’s degree and we have been working on curriculum options to accomplish that.   

The CLS Service Society conducted a survey of CLS and MDS graduates in the fall of 2017. They wanted to know what graduates have done with their degrees and they sought advice as they prepared to start their careers. We are grateful to everyone who responded to that survey and provided the updates that you will see in this newsletter. In addition to conducting the alumni survey, students in the CLS Service Society helped at the Ronald McDonald House and promoted the profession through laboratory tours and other recruitment activities. The students’ enthusiasm for CLS has been a great recruiting tool for the program.

We are also happy to announce we have filled our faculty position. In August, Shawn Luby will join our faculty. Shawn is a 2006 graduate of our program and was selected as the outstanding senior student in his class. After graduation, Shawn worked in the Core Laboratory of UNC Hospitals’ McLendon Laboratories for eight years. He taught some courses in the CLS program as an adjunct faculty, and he received the Louise Ward Excellence in Teaching Award in 2017.  Shawn is completing his Master of Science in Microbiology and Cell Science at the University of Florida, and he will bring his clinical experience, teaching experience, and enthusiasm for learning to the CLS program. We are fortunate to add Shawn Luby to the faculty.

-Dr. Susan Beck