New grant helps to expand Medical Lab Technician program to meet workforce growth

Saint Paul College receives a grant to help meet demand for new employees in the medical laboratory and clinical lab fields.

In these days of increasingly advanced testing, the medical laboratory and clinical lab fields are growing rapidly. To help train needed skilled workers, Saint Paul College was recently awarded a $1.9 million grant by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Made possible by the federal government's Community–Based Job Training Grants Initiative, the grant will help the College expand enrollment and will focus on increasing the number of students who are underrepresented in the field, such as immigrants, minorities, and dislocated workers. In addition to the grant, which calls for partnering with Allina Health System, K–12 education, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of Minnesota, the College will receive local matching challenge funds from industry partners totaling $1,188,500, bringing the project total to $3,187,354.

Medical laboratory technicians and clinical laboratory scientists are in high demand, with a projected 2000 new hires needed between 2005 and 2015 to accommodate growth and attrition (retirement). "We are excited about the opportunity to play a significant role in the development of solutions for the workforce shortages experienced by the medical laboratory profession," says Michelle Briski, department chair of the Medical Laboratory program at Saint Paul College. "The job opportunities, now and into the future, abound in this field due in part to the large numbers of incumbent workers expected to retire in the near future."

Learn more about our Medical Laboratory Technician program or contact Michelle Briski (E-mail Michelle Briski or call her at 651.846.1421).