We would like to encourage all Fellow members to participate in the AAPA Board of Trustees (BOT) election. Voting is now open and will remain open through the extended deadline of Monday, December 13, 2021 at 11:59 pm CST. Those who are attending the 46th Annual Conference: The Future of Pathology in person will have the opportunity to cast their vote onsite. All other Fellow members are invited to cast their vote online via SurveyMonkey (check your email for the ballot).
To learn more about a candidate, click on their name above to be taken to their feature page. For this election, you will be able to cast your vote for up to three of five candidates.
Results will be announced later in December, and elected members will begin their terms in January 2022.
Thank you in advance for your participation!
Organization: University of Chicago Medicine
Location: Chicago, IL
Fellow Member Since: 2012
Current AAPA Position: BOT Incumbent, MarComm Oversight
Please tell the AAPA membership about yourself, and describe your past volunteer work.
I began my career as an Anatomic Pathology Technician in 2007 where I fell in love with gross pathology. I was mentored by phenomenal PAs who encouraged my return to school to become a PA. I graduated from Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in 2011. Since graduation, I have worked at an academic institution and am a preceptor to second year PA students in the Rosalind Franklin program. I became the senior (supervising) PA in 2014 and recently promoted to Manager of Anatomic Pathology in May of 2018. I have been a member of the AAPA since 2009 (joined as a student) and have served as Chair of the Marketing and Communications Committee (formerly Public Relations Committee) of the AAPA from 2013 to 2019. In 2019, I began serving my first term on the BOT. Since 2015, I have also served on the ASCP BOC Pathologists’ Assistants Examination Committee and was elected Vice Chair for the 2018 term and Chair for the 2019 and 2020 terms. I am also active in local high school career days and mentor those interested in the profession by providing opportunities for lab shadowing.
Why are you interested in serving on the AAPA BOT?
I would like to continue serving a second term to see some projects come to completion. I also serve as oversight for the MarComm committee, and this is the first year that there is a robust amount of volunteers on all of the subcommittees. I would love to see where this committee takes the profession in the next three years!
What is your understanding of the mission and vision of this organization?
The AAPA is the sole champion for Pathologists’ Assistants. No other organization dedicates as much time and effort into providing PAs with educational opportunities, support, and forward progress. It is run by the very people practicing as PAs in the field every single day. There is no entity better to make collaborative decisions for the profession.
What do you think should be the most important priority for AAPA?
In my last run for BOT, I said that Advocacy is the most important priority for the AAPA, and this still rings true for me. We have made recent and gradual progress with accurate recognition of the profession with launching our new branding, “It Pays to Know” campaign, Grossing Technician Statement, Grossing Guidelines, and several PAs making an impression on the pathology social media world. There is still much to do, and I want to continue to be a part of the positive change.
Is there a particular area that you feel could be improved within AAPA?
We must continue to educate employers, administrators, pathologists, residents, clinical physicians, etc. about our profession.
What is the biggest challenge your lab faces today?
I’m going to repeat from my previous BOT ballot: the apparent but not fully sanctioned, cultural shift in residency education expectations. Specifically, in regard to activities and feedback related to gross pathology. Competing responsibilities and focus are causing many residents to dislike or not value the gross examination. If they are to be future pathologists, then this may result in opinions that may diminish the essential role that PAs have in patient care. We must continue to underscore our expertise in gross and autopsy pathology.