SoShowMe. President s Column. Summer Inside this issue: executive office in the future.

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1 Summer 2015 Page 1 Inside this issue: President s Column ASCLS-MO Awards and Election Results 2015 Annual Spring Meeting Meet us in the Middle! 2015 Spring Meeting Fund Raising Activities 2015 ASCLS-MO Spring Meeting Poster Award 2015 ASCLS-MO Spring Meeting Photos 2015 ASCLS Annual Meeting Awardees Focus on the Importance of Membership Recruitment President s Column You will never know until you try. When my term started I did not know if I could lead this organization to success. I have never been a leader, preferring to work alone. Delegation has never been one of my strengths. I am not a supervisor or manager and I do not have the desire to become one. The absence of these qualities was an obstacle I would have to overcome if I wanted to succeed. As a younger professional my goals may not be the same as the veteran members. In previous years, growing our membership has been a focus. I agree that increasing our membership is very important, but I wanted to focus efforts on promoting the profession. Informing the public about our field is a lab professional s responsibility. ASCLS- Missouris leadership has spent this year gaining access to more of the public than ever as our reach now even extends to eighth graders! We have been submitting articles on lab science to local papers, advocating at blood drives, and presenting to high school classes and at Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) events. The effects of this initiative may not be immediate or quantifiable, but we are making a difference. Even if we do not bring more professionals into the field, we have increased public awareness. As part of the age group, I have been in the field for less than ten years. I have realized how hard it can be to acclimate to a new position. We have amazing mentors within ASCLS-Missouri but we have traditionally lacked a structured succession or mentorship plan. We have started planning for the future by distributing USB drives to leadership to record their progress. This will help future leaders by having access to imparted knowledge. This plan will give the next members ideas on how to achieve their position specific goals. We have also started guiding our newer members into positions that will cultivate the knowledge they need to hold executive office in the future. I combined the last two goals I assigned to this year s leadership: membership and fundraising. I am excited to announce that ASCLS has increased membership across the nation by 1,000 members! Much of this increase has been due to the new educational and lab manager packages. You can find information on these packages on the ASCLS website ( I highly recommend that you look into this as a way to increase membership within your place of employment. For fundraising efforts we had a successful raffle at our spring meeting and we are planning a trivia event with more details to come at a later date. As my term comes to an end, I think back to when I first took office. I had goals in mind, but as a first time president I was not sure I could accomplish them. We have gained new members, raised money, and continued our long-time tradition of offering quality continuing education to our members. We have strategic plans in progress to ensure the future of the organization and have brought new members with new ideas into the ASCLS-Missouri leadership. (Cont. on pg. 2)

2 President s Column cont. from pg. 1 This year has been full of lessons, but the two that will help me in the future the most are to 1) always set deadlines and 2) delegate tasks to those whose strengths match what is needed. Various commitments can overwhelm us and unless there is a clear deadline tasks can fall off of our radar. Delegation is an art! Knowing the strengths of each member on your team will help you assign tasks effectively. The success of this year is due to the hard work of the leadership team and all ASCLS-Missouri members. Thank you all for everything you do! I feel confident in the direction we are heading and feel proud to have served as your President. See you again in ! Sharon Duessel, MLS(ASCP) CM President 2015 ASCLS-MO Awards and Election Results Submitted by Debbie Baudler M.S., MT(ASCP)SBB Past President, Awards and Nomination Committee Chair Omicron Sigma is the ASCLS President s Honor Roll for Outstanding Service. First awarded in 1977, it provides lasting recognition of those dedicated members who volunteer their personal resources, time, and energy to the ASCLS; either at the state, regional, or national level. The nominees receive a sticker to put on their name badge at the ASCLS annual meeting. The 2015 nominees are: State level: Mary Lou Vehige, Alese Furnald, Kristine Hayes, Melissa Dimariano, Monica Stumpf, Lucia Johnson, Rita Heuertz, and Feng Cao Region VI level: Stephanie Godfrey, John Koenig, and Sharon Duessel National level: Ed Peterson and Tim Randolph Keys to the Future serves to recognize and reward ASCLS members who have demonstrated their leadership potential to the organization and to provide these members with structured mentoring. Recipients receive recognition and a unique Key to the Future pin at the annual ASCLS meeting. The 2015 Keys to the Future nominees are: Melissa Dimariano and Feng Cao ASCLS Constituent Society Member of the Year Award serves to recognize a member who has contributed significantly to the field of clinical laboratory science and to the state chapter of ASCLS in the past 5-10 years and who has, by outstanding example, inspired others over that time as an active member in the organization. The 2015 Member of the Year for Missouri is: Sarah (Schumacher) Eckelkamp (Cont. on next page) Page 2

3 2015 ASCLS-MO Awards and Election Results cont. from pg. 2 ASCLS New Professional of the Year Award is to recognize a member who has contributed significantly to the field of clinical laboratory science and to ASCLS in their first five years in the profession. The recipient and all nominees will receive a plaque and recognition at the ASCLS annual meeting. The 2015 New Young Professional of the Year nominee is: Stephanie Godfrey The newly elected officers for the year are: President: John Koenig Pres-elect: Sharon Duessel Secretary: Stephanie Godfrey 1 st year board member: Sarah (Schumacher) Eckelkamp Nominations Committee: Lucia Johnson, Elizabeth Jones, and Tim Randolph 2015 Annual Spring Meeting - Meet us in the Middle! Alese M. Furnald MS, MLS (ASCP) CM and Kristine Hayes MAT, MLS(ASCP) CM Spring Meeting Co-Chairs This year we hosted the annual ASCLS-Missouri Spring Meeting in Columbia, MO at the Broadway Hotel. It was quite the undertaking for two individuals who have never hosted an annual meeting before! We definitely could not have done it without the help of other members, who helped us out tremendously. We would like to say a special thank you to Sharon Duessel, Lucia Johnson, Mary Lou Vehige, John Koenig, Nancy Reddig, and Tim Randolph for their countless hours spent showing us the ropes and working as a team to make this meeting happen. Also, thanks to Amanda Reed for organizing the student poster contest; this year s posters were amazing! We would also like to thank all of our speakers and attendees for providing time out of their busy schedules to be a part of the conference. Next year s conference will be in Chesterfield, MO, on April 5-7, We hope to see everyone there! 2015 Spring Meeting Fund Raising Activities Submitted by Lucia Johnson M.A. Ed., MT(ASCP)SBB Tom Reddig Missouri Scholarship Fund Committee Chair Two fund raising activities were held at the 2015 Spring Meeting in Columbia, netting a total of $ for the Tom Reddig Missouri Scholarship Fund. A raffle raised $80.00, and the winner of the drawing was John Koenig. He graciously donated his $40.00 winnings back into the fund. Thank you, John! A small candy bar bouquet was donated for a drawing, raising $ The winner of the drawing was Lu Foster. Thanks to all who donated money to these fund raisers! Anyone can do fund raising activities for the scholarship fund throughout the year! If your place of employment allows fund raising activities, you can set up an event during Medical Laboratory Professionals Week. Fund raising can also be done at any ASCLS-Missouri P.A.C.E. -approved educational event. Raising money at events such as these is a great way to identify the scholarship benefit of membership in ASCLS/ASCLS-Missouri! For more information about the Tom Reddig Missouri Scholarship Fund or ways to raise funds, contact Lucia Johnson at luciaj@ncctinc.com or luciajohnson123@gmail.com. Page 3

4 2015 ASCLS-MO Spring Meeting Poster Award Submitted by Stephanie Godfrey MLS(ASCP) CM Second Year Board Director Each year at the spring meeting, ASCLS-Missouri holds the Student Poster Competition. The winner receives a one-year membership to ASCLS and the opportunity to present their poster at the Annual ASCLS meeting. This year at the Student Poster Competition the winner was Brad Lipinski from Saint Louis University with his poster Optimizing a Microscopic Method for Detection of Hemoglobin C. Congratulations to Brad Lipinski on his poster and great job to everyone who came to compete, we had some really awesome posters this year! Photographs submitted by Amanda Reed MAE, MLS(ASCP) CM Scientific Assembly Co-Chair Optimizing a Microscopic Method for Detection of Hemoglobin C Student: Brad Lipinski, Saint Louis University Advisor/Mentor: Tim Randolph, PhD, MT(ASCP) START III: Culture Evaluation of Compost for Potential Enteric Pathogens Student: Briana Dunlap, Saint Louis Universtiy Advisor/Mentor: Donna Duberg, MA, MS, MT(ASCP)SM MIC and MBC Assays for the Plant Derived Compound Cinnamaldehyde Student: Amanda Ivie, Saint Louis Universtiy Advisor/Mentor: Rita M. Heuertz, PhD, MT(ASCP) Cinnamaldehyde Inhibits Biofilm Formation of MRSA Student: Marco W. Rossi, Saint Louis Universtiy Advisor/Mentor: Rita M. Heuertz, PhD, MT(ASCP) Page 4

5 2015 ASCLS-MO Spring Meeting Photos Photographs submitted by Amanda Reed MAE, MLS(ASCP)CM Scientific Assembly Co-Chair Page 5

6 2015 ASCLS Annual Meeting Awardees Submitted by Stephanie Godfrey MLS(ASCP) CM Second Year Board Director On behalf of ASCLS-Missouri, congratulations go out to Marco Rossi on his hard work and being awarded the 2015 ASCLS Education Scientific Assembly Student Research Paper Award, pictured left. Marco s winning paper was titled Cinnamaldehyde Inhibits MRSA Biofilm Formation and Elicits Cell Death. We would also like to congratulate Temitope Adeyeni for her award, the J. Dean Spradling Graduate Research Grant presented by the ASCLS Education and Research Fund, Incorporated, that she received for her research titled, Antiproliferative Effect of Cucumin on Colorectal Cancer Cells. The award was accepted by Dr. Ezekiel, pictured right. Last but not least, we would like to congratulate Lucia Johnson for her award nomination for the ASCLS Lifetime Achievement award. Congratulations Lucia and thank you for all that you do! Focus on the Importance of Membership Recruitment Submitted by Alese M. Furnald MS, MLS (ASCP) CM Spring Meeting Co-Chair ASCLS-Missouri is made up of selfless volunteers who share a common passion; maintaining excellence in the clinical laboratory profession. Recruiting members who also share in this same passion is something that we, as a society, value and actively pursue. It is the single, best way to help keep this society alive and thriving within the ever-growing field of clinical laboratory medicine. I can remember when I was first recruited by my professors at Saint Louis University. Join this organization and be a part of something bigger, they told me enthusiastically. Joining was the best decision I could have made due to the strong relationships I have made with people who share my same commitment to excellence in the laboratory. As members of an organization, it is our job to give others the same opportunity to receive continuing education, network, become leaders, and provide a place where their voice can be heard. Since recruitment is one of the most important tools our organization has to expand the membership; we need to reach every single person within the laboratory field and let them know who we are and that we share a common bond. I challenge each and every one of you to come up with a quick 30-second pitch that you can use when someone asks you, what ASCLS-Missouri is. Explain in your own terms what our society does, why we do it, and where we see ourselves in the future. I know there are people you work with who are not members of ASCLS-Missouri. I will ask you to take the challenge one step further and talk to your co-workers by giving them your 30-second pitch. Ask them to join you in creating something bigger for yourselves and future laboratorians. Just remember, you cannot recruit someone you have not talked to. Page 6