Healthy demand for medical professionals leads to new department

As a result of the growing demand for highly skilled healthcare professionals and increasing student interest in various medical fields, Alfred State College has added a number of related programs within the past few years, such as radiologic technology, diagnostic medical sonography, and healthcare management.

With the addition of these majors, and with even more in the pipeline, Alfred State has recently created a new home for these current and future programs: the Allied Health Department. Students in this all-new department will receive a strong education in a wide range of allied health disciplines through online and on-campus curricular offerings.

Existing programs that have become a part of the Allied Health Department include coding and reimbursement specialist (certificate), diagnostic medical sonography (AAS), health information technology (AAS), healthcare management (BTech), and radiologic technology (AAS).

Allied health consists of a diverse range of specialized occupations that fall outside the traditional medical and healthcare professions such as doctors, nurses, and dentists. Some careers involve direct care of patients, usually as a member of a multidisciplinary healthcare team, and others involve office work and administration.

Provost Dr. Kristin Poppo, said, “We are excited to announce the addition of Allied Health as the 18^th department at Alfred State College. The interest we have seen in various medical fields over the past few years has led us to create several majors that are in such high demand that we regularly have to waitlist students for some of them. The Allied Health Department will help us to better focus our efforts in cultivating and expanding these programs, as well as those currently in development.”

​Poppo also welcomed Kathy L. Young, who has been selected to serve as the chair of the Allied Health Department. Young earned an associate degree in respiratory care and a bachelor’s degree in advanced cardiorespiratory science from SUNY Health Science Center at Syracuse (now Upstate Medical University), and her master’s degree in health administration from Ohio University.

Prior to joining Alfred State, Young served as an adjunct instructor for SUNY Health Science Center at Syracuse, Mohawk Valley Community College, and Onondaga Community College; as a respiratory therapist at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse, University of Maryland Hospital, and Franklin Square Hospital in Baltimore; a respiratory therapy manager at Franciscan Health Support; center manager of Capital Oxygen Service; staff respiratory therapist at Canton Potsdam Hospital; pharmaceutical sales representative for AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals and InVentiv Health; and as director of quality and compliance at the Cerebral Palsy Association of the North County in Canton.

“I am very excited to be selected as the chair for the new Allied Health Department,” Young said. “It provides me an opportunity to utilize my previous professional experiences to maintain and grow an already robust department. The need for allied health professionals is increasing, and I look forward to assisting Alfred State College in providing highly qualified professionals to New York.”

In addition to Young, the Allied Health Department consists of faculty and staff who bring a plethora of industry experience from laboratories and healthcare settings to their work with students. They share the common goal of effectively delivering the practical and theoretical foundations of disciplines through a rich blend of interactive lectures, informal discussion, meaningful laboratory inquiries, and professional practice or clinical experiences.

Allied Health students are able to greatly benefit from direct use of modern laboratory/clinical equipment in real-world or simulated settings, as well as the highest-level virtual laboratory experiences. Programs are housed in either the Physical and Health Sciences Building or the Agriculture Science Building.

Learn more about the Allied Health Department.