Cindy Altman Begins Term As Immediate Past-President; Angie Marczali Receives ‘Shining Star’ Award
McLean, Virginia – January 14, 2014– The Board of Registered Polysomnographic Technologists (BRPT) named Theresa Krupski, RPSGT, RRT President of the Board of Directors. Her two-year term as President begins this month. Krupski has been a member of the BRPT Board since 2010 serving as Chair of the Scholarship Committee, the Volunteer Committee, an active participant on the Exam Development Committee, and this past year as President-Elect. Krupski is the program director for Electroneurodiagnostic Technology at the Community College of Denver.
“It’s an honor to be elected President of the BRPT Board,” said Theresa Krupski. “Under Cindy’s leadership – and other past presidents – the Board has accomplishment a tremendous amount – the forward momentum is exciting.” Krupski recognized the contributions of Immediate Past-President Cindy Altman, noting expanded legislative and regulatory efforts to increase recognition and awareness of BRPT certifications; the hiring of a dedicated Resource and Education Director to improve and enhance examination materials and educational offerings; revisions to examinations and eligibility criteria to reflect current trends, including new exam blueprints, a new international candidate pathway and the Sleep Technology Approved Resource program; the launch of the Clinical Sleep Educator certificate program and a new credentialing examination for Certification in Clinical Sleep Health which will be offered for the first time in the Spring/Summer.
“It has been a privilege to be a leader in such a dynamic and innovative organization, one that is dedicated to creating and sustaining value to patients, physicians, healthcare professionals, government regulators, and insurers,” said Immediate Past-President Cindy Altman, RPSGT, R. EEG/EP T. “I’m grateful for the support and input I’ve received during my tenure from both my fellow Board members and the broader sleep technologist community. I’m confident that Theresa – along with a strong Board of Directors and support staff – will keep the organization on a positive course, and I very much look forward to BRPT’s next chapter.”
Current Board member Angie Marczali, RPSGT, RRT, received the 2013 BRPT President’s Shining Star Award in November for her dedication and outstanding service to the organization. Said Altman, “I was excited to recognize Angie with the Shining Star Award. Her leadership efforts in the recruitment and hiring of our new Resource and Education Director were instrumental. Angie really helped to shape this position and important role for the organization.”
The change in Board leadership takes effect this month, but an official installation will take place at a BRPT Board meeting in McLean, VA on March 22, 2014.
New Board Member
Jessica Schmidt, RPSGT, RST
Jessica Schmidt has been in sleep for eight years and is currently the manager of the Sleep Disorders Center at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC. She was director of the first CAAHEP-accredited Polysomnography program in the Mid-Atlantic (the Community College of Baltimore County) and recently began directing the program at Montgomery College. Jessica is a founding member and the Immediate Past-President of the Maryland Sleep Society. She also serves on the Maryland Board of Physician’s Polysomnographic Advisory Committee.
Continuing Members of The Board
BRPT Board member Donna Arand, PhD, of the Sleep Disorders Center at Kettering Hospital in Dayton, OH serves as Secretary. Other continuing Board members of the BRPT include: Charles Atwood, MD, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA; Helen Driver, PhD, RPSGT, DABSM, Somnologist, Sleep Disorders Lab, Kingston General Hospital and Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada; Daniel Goya-Lane, RPSGT, Arkona Diagnostic Services, Long Beach, CA; Sherry Johnston (Public Member), Knoxville, TN; Deb Kovacs-Sturdevant, RPSGT, RRT, Mercy Health Anderson Hospital, Cincinnati, OH; Angie Marczali, RPSGT, RRT, Advocate Health Care, Chicago, IL; Daniel Mobley, RPSGT, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA. Biographies of all BRPT Board members can be found at www.brpt.org.
The BRPT Board of Directors is comprised of volunteer members, all of whom serve four-year terms. The Board is international in scope and blends the expertise of the sleep community representing the interests of the consumer and patient.
The BRPT develops and administers credentialing exams for polysomnographic technologists and technicians. The RPSGT is respected worldwide as the leading credential for polysomnographic technologists. Since the first credentialing exam administration in 1979, BRPT has credentialed more than 20,000 RPSGTs worldwide. In 2012, BRPT launched its Clinical Sleep Educator (CSE) Program, offering an assessment-based certificate to qualifying individuals.
Headquartered in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, the BRPT is an independent, non-profit certification board that cultivates the highest professional and ethical standards for polysomnographic technologists. In addition to administering the RPSGT and CPSGT exams in the United States and internationally, the BRPT also maintains the RPSGT registry and CPSGT roster. The BRPT also provides its Continuing Sleep Technology Education (CSTE) Program for educational providers seeking continuing education credits for their offerings. For more information, please visit www.brpt.org.