North Oaks School of Radiologic Technology Graduates 53rd Class

The 53^rd graduating class of the North Oaks School of Radiologic Technology celebrated their accomplishments with a commencement ceremony on Wednesday, July 6.

Program Director Heather Koepp proudly shares that the class of 2022 has a 100% job placement rate with six of the fourteen graduates accepting positions with North Oaks Health System.

Pictured above, graduates include: (front row, from left) Samantha Rose Liberto-Womack of Kentwood; Nicole E. Dazet of St. Rose; Chelsea Lea Johnson of Loranger; Kelsey Marie Saldana of Kentwood; Samantha Vaughn Beyl of Hammond; Madelyn Claire Williams of Gillsburg, Mississippi; Alexis Rae Shirer of LaPlace; (back row, from left) Andrea Ceny Dileo and Audrey Eugenia Robles of Hammond; Kevin Michael Harger of Baton Rouge; Max Allen Miller of Ponchatoula; Edward Andre’ Mason II of Hammond; as well as Abby Lynn Palmer and McKenzi Grace Oden of Ponchatoula.

Commencement was held at the E. Brent Dufreche Conference Center. North Oaks Pastoral Care Director Keith Kincaid delivered the invocation, and Lisa Raney and Cynthia Thornbury of the Auxiliary of Gideons International presented each graduate with a Bible for medical professionals.

The health system’s Chief Human Resources Officer Jeff Jarreau presided over the ceremony that concluded two years of study for the students involving 2,000 clinical hours and more than 1,200 classroom hours and 400 exams and quizzes.

The commencement address was delivered by Rocky J. Brown, alumni of North Oaks School of Radiologic Technology and program manager for Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center.

Brown began his remarks by articulating his respect and admiration for North Oaks School of Radiologic Technology and its graduates.

“My career arc has given me exposure to many organizations in differing capacities over the past seven years,” he asserts. “Products of the North Oaks School of Radiologic Technology program are consistently among the highest level performers I have encountered.”

Brown encouraged the graduates to invest in themselves.

“Commit to being a lifelong learner,” he advises. “When an individual decides they’ve learned enough, they can no longer grow.”

Before the presentation of diplomas by Koepp, outstanding achievement awards were given. Koepp presented the Academic Achievement Award to Johnson for obtaining the highest overall scholastic average, and the Performance and Attitude Award for exceptional performance in the clinical setting was presented to Miller by Stephanie McKenzie, the school’s clinical coordinator.

Kenneth Travis, didactic instructor for the school, presented the Dannye Young Taylor “Always Remembering Others Award,” named in honor of one of the health system’s first patient representatives, to Williams in recognition of her outstanding patient care skills.

In addition, Beyl, Dazet, Dileo, Harger, Johnson, Liberto-Womack; Miller, Oden, Palmer, Robles, Saldana, Shirer and Williams were recognized as members of Lambda Nu, a national honor society for the radiologic and imaging sciences. To become a member, one must maintain a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average out of a possible 4.0.

Koepp notes that many members of the class of 2022 received state and national acclaim through the Louisiana Society of Radiologic Technologists (LSRT) and American Society of Radiologic Technologists (ASRT).

Dileo placed first in the LSRT scientific essay competition, while Johnson, Miller and Saldana completed the LSRT Student Leadership Development Program.

Saldana also received LSRT’s Joe Schwartz Memorial Scholarship and was one of sixteen students to receive a scholarship from Lambda Nu this past spring. In addition, Saldana made history as the first North Oaks student to be selected to participate in the ASRT Student Leadership Development Program. She was one of two students from Louisiana and eighty chosen nationwide.

Also of note, Liberto-Womack was accepted into the Nuclear Medicine program of Weber State University in Ogden, Utah and will begin this next step in her training in August. She will complete her clinicals for the program through North Oaks Health System and Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center.

Established in 1967, the North Oaks School of Radiologic Technology is accredited by JRCERT. The school offers a comprehensive 24-month program that provides classroom and clinical instruction to prepare students for careers in the field of diagnostic imaging, which is used to diagnose and treat diseases and injuries. Upon graduation, students are eligible to take the ARRT national certification examination and apply for Louisiana state licensure.

Applications for the 2023-25 class will be accepted through June 1, 2023. Applications are available online here.

For more information, call North Oaks School of Radiologic Technology at (985) 230-7805.