The American Society of Radiologic Technologists will award Life Member status to two members and bestow the status of Fellow on four members during the 2020 Virtual Special Meeting of the House of Delegates on June 27.
The Society’s newest Life Members are Linda Holden, M.S., R.T.(R)(QM), FASRT, and Mary Loritsch, Ed.D., R.T.(R), FASRT. Fellows elevation goes to Amy Hofmann, M.B.A., R.T.(R)(CT), RDMS, CRA; Benjamin Morris, M.S.Ed., R.T.(R)(T)(CT); Ann Obergfell, J.D., R.T.(R); and Travis Prowant, M.S.H.S., R.R.A., R.T.(R)(CV)(CT).
Life Member Awards
Established in 1938, Life Members are active ASRT members who have maintained continuous membership for at least 30 years and have participated in a wide range of volunteer activities that demonstrate dedication to the ASRT and the radiologic technology profession. Candidates who receive the honor are selected by at least a three-quarters vote of the ASRT Board of Directors.
Linda Holden, M.S., R.T.(R)(QM), FASRT, is highly regarded in the radiologic technologist community and in her home state of Wyoming, where she serves as secretary for two state senate committees and volunteers at the VA Hospital and Meals on Wheels of Cheyenne. Holden implemented the first ultrasound program in Wyoming. She has served as an administrator, program director, educator and technologist at health systems and educational institutions in Wyoming, Nebraska and Germany. She served on the ASRT Board of Directors for seven years where she held the positions of speaker of the House of Delegates, president and Board chair. She has been a keynote speaker and presented lectures at radiologic science conferences across the country. In addition, she is the author of a peer-reviewed article for a scientific journal. The Wyoming Society of Radiologic Technologists honored her twice with the Mallinckrodt Award of Excellence and three times with the Liz Escobedo Award of Excellence. She was named Educator of the Year by the Association of Collegiate Educators in Radiologic Technology and elevated to ASRT Fellow in 2008. She is a life member of the Wyoming and Colorado Societies of Radiologic Technologists.
Mary Loritsch, Ed.D., R.T.(R), FASRT, is a retired professor and radiography program director at Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke — the same program she graduated from in 1974. Dr. Loritsch has served on the Virginia Society of Radiologic Technologists Board of Directors and the ASRT House of Delegates. She was appointed to and served for a decade on the first ASRT Educational Scholarship Committee. She has performed extensive committee work on a national level and is a longtime advocate for national standards for medical radiation. Known as a gifted educator, she has developed more than 70 lectures and classes over her career and has published articles in national scientific journals. She has presented lectures in Sweden detailing radiography practices in the United States and lectured on Swedish radiography practices to audiences in the U.S. She was named a distinguished alumni of Virginia Western Community College and outstanding alumnus of Radford University. Loritsch was appointed by Virginia Gov. Mark Warner to serve on the first Radiologic Technology Advisory Board of Virginia and was reappointed by Gov. Tim Kaine for a total service of eight years. In addition, she was elevated to the status of ASRT Fellow in 1995, named a life member of the Virginia Society of Radiologic Technologists in 2008 and received the Nalley-Graves Outstanding Technologist Award from the VSRT in 2017.
Elevation of Fellows
The ASRT established the honorary Fellow category in 1956 to recognize members who have made outstanding contributions to the profession and ASRT. Fellows have volunteered in leadership positions at the national and local levels, written articles for publication, presented at professional meetings and helped advance the radiologic technology profession.
Amy Hofmann, M.B.A., R.T.(R)(CT), RDMS, CRA, program director for the Trinity Health Diagnostic Medical Sonography program in Minot, North Dakota, is credentialed by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists in radiography and computed tomography. She is also a registered diagnostic medical sonographer and a certified radiology administrator. Hofmann received a master of business administration from the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota. An ASRT member since 1998, Hofmann has chaired the Management and Sonography chapters, served on multiple occasions in the ASRT House of Delegates and served on numerous committees and task forces. She is also a graduate of the ASRT Leadership Academy and the ASRT Educator Institute. A longtime member of the North Dakota Society of Radiologic Technologists, she has held every position on the society’s board of directors, including president. She was selected to present the Lester Shook Honorary Lecture at the NDSRT conference in 2005. The North Dakota Society named her a life member in 2006. Her exceptional efforts in legislative advocacy helped lay the groundwork for the North Dakota Legislative Assembly to create the North Dakota Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Board of Examiners in 2015.
Benjamin Morris, M.S.Ed., R.T.(R)(T)(CT), director of CoxHealth Cancer Center in Branson, Missouri, is credentialed in radiography, radiation therapy and computed tomography by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists. Morris received a master of science in education from Missouri State University in Springfield. A member of ASRT since 2000, he has published peer-reviewed articles in a national scientific journal and is a well-known lecturer who has presented on a diverse array of radiation therapy topics at state, national and international conferences. He is a graduate of the ASRT Leadership Academy and the ASRT Leadership Academy for Educators. For ASRT, he has served on the
Radiation Therapist Editorial Review Board, Committee on Nominations, Committee on Bylaws and Commission, as well as chairing the Radiation Therapy Chapter, which he also represented as a delegate in the ASRT House of Delegates. He has served in several positions on the Missouri Society of Radiologic Technologists Board of Directors, including president. He has been named a fellow and life member of the MoSRT. Morris is also the author of a textbook for radiation therapy instructors.
Ann Obergfell, J.D., R.T.(R), professor of medical imaging and radiologic sciences at Indiana University Fort Wayne, earned an associate degree in radiologic sciences from Indiana University at Fort Wayne, a bachelor’s degree in health services management from Indiana University at Indianapolis and a juris doctorate from the University of Louisville School of Law. Additionally, she has served in administrative and faculty positions at St. Catharine College and the University of Louisville. A member of ASRT since 1998, she chaired the Practice Standards Development Committee and was a member of the Practice Standards Advisory Council. She is an authority on the subjects of law, ethics and practice standards in medical imaging, having written chapters and a textbook on those subjects. Obergfell served on the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists Board of Trustees from 2010-2018. A member of the Association of Educators in Imaging and Radiologic Sciences, the Indiana Society of Radiologic Technologists and Kentucky Bar Association, Obergfell is also a licensed radiologic technologist in the state of Indiana and holds a certificate to practice law in the commonwealth of Kentucky.
Travis Prowant, M.S.H.S., R.R.A., R.T.(R)(CV)(CT), is a registered radiologist assistant at Virginia Commonwealth University Health System in Richmond, Virginia. He is credentialed by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists not only as a registered radiologist assistant but also holds credentials in radiography, cardiovascular interventional and computed tomography. Prowant earned a bachelor of science degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and a master’s of health sciences degree from Trident University International in Cypress, California. For the ASRT, he has served as chair of the Commission and chaired the Military and the Registered Radiologist Assistant chapters, which he represented as a delegate in the ASRT House of Delegates. He is a graduate of both the ASRT Leadership Academy and ASRT Leadership Academy for Educators. A popular lecturer, he has presented at state and national conferences more than three dozen times. He is also known for a patriotic recitation he delivers annually at the ASRT Installation of Officers event. He has been a member of the Virginia Society of Radiologic Technologists for more than 25 years, where he has served in numerous positions, including president and board chair. He currently serves as a member of the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists Board of Trustees.