By Aidan Bearden / Staff Writer

Missouri Valley University’s new sonography program is working toward accreditation after a troubled launch that delayed classes, reduced in-person instruction and raised concerns among students about the effectiveness of online training.

The program, which enrolled five students in its inaugural semester, began classes Sept. 21, five weeks into the fall semester. An unexpected change in leadership and difficulties hiring instructors forced the university to shift the program to a primarily online format.

Joe Alsobrook, MVU’s vice president for institutional affairs and strategic initiatives and dean liaison for the School of Nursing and Health Sciences, said the program was developed in response to a shortage of sonographers at Missouri Valley Regional Medical Center, formerly known as Fitzgibbon Hospital.

Alsobrook said the program represents more than an expansion of the university’s academic offerings. It is also an effort to address workforce needs in the Marshall community.

Despite the challenges, he considers the program’s launch a success.

“I think that at the end of the day we just need to recognize that this is a win for Missouri Valley,” Alsobrook said. “We overcame a last-minute curveball … but we didn’t give up.”

As previously reported by The Delta, the program’s original plans called for laboratory sessions twice a week. Following the transition to online instruction, that schedule was reduced to two extended laboratory sessions during the semester.

One student interviewed in October questioned whether the online format could adequately prepare students for a profession requiring extensive hands-on training.

“How am I supposed to learn how to do it online?” the student asked.

Program director Katherine Flores, who was hired following the unexpected resignation of the university’s original choice for the position, defended the hybrid approach, citing her own experience completing a hybrid sonography program.

Flores, who works from California, was the program’s only instructor when classes began.

As the program moves forward, MVU is seeking accreditation, a process Alsobrook said typically takes two years.

According to Alsobrook, the process involves hiring additional instructors, establishing an advisory board, obtaining approval of the curriculum from an accrediting agency and meeting other requirements.

Alsobrook expressed confidence in Flores and the other faculty members working toward accreditation, pointing to her continued professional experience as a sonographer.

“I have 100% confidence in [Flores] in making sure our program is fine-tuned, not only to the accreditation standard, but she is still a sonographer in California,” Alsobrook said. “Not only is she fine-tuning it to the standards; she’s fine-tuning it to what she’s experiencing every month in the workplace.”