COLUMNS

2 President ’ s and CEO ’ s Message

3 Fellowship Project Supply Fund Aims to Eliminate Barriers

FROM THE BENCH

INDUSTRY MATTERS

6 Advancing Public Health Through the Integration of NGS and Automation

7 Molecular Diagnostics : How Do You QC ? FEATURE

7700 Wisconsin Avenue , Suite 1000 Bethesda , MD 20814 Phone : 240.485.2745 Fax : 240.485.2700 info @ aphl . org aphl . org

The Association of Public Health Laboratories ( APHL ) works to strengthen laboratory systems serving the public ’ s health in the US and globally . APHL ’ s member laboratories protect the public ’ s health by monitoring and detecting infectious and foodborne diseases , environmental contaminants , terrorist agents , genetic disorders in newborns and other diverse

health threats .

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5 Navigating Biomonitoring in Rural Communities : The Iowa Experience

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8 Public Health on the Frontier

LAB MATTERS STAFF

Gynene Sullivan , MA Editor

Brittany Robertson Art Director

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Environmental Health

16 Vermont LRN-C at the Ready

18 Connecting STEM Students to Environmental Laboratory Careers

APHL PROGRAMS

Infectious Diseases

21 Alabama Hosts In-person Mycobacterium tuberculosis Diagnostic Workshop

Informatics

22 The Use of Intermediaries to Facilitate ETOR for Public Health

Public Health Preparedness and Response

24 Embracing Evolution : Navigating Changes to the Laboratory Response Network

David Fouse Advisor

To submit an article for consideration , contact Gynene Sullivan at gynene . sullivan @ aphl . org .

2023 – 2024 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Timothy Southern , PhD President

Megan Crumpler , PhD President-elect

Godfred Masinde , PhD , MBA , HCLD ( ABB ) Secretary-Treasurer

Sharon Massingale , PhD , HCLD / CC ( ABB ) Public Health Institutional State Representative

Global Health

20 APHL Makes an Impact at ASLM 2023

25 Advancing Biosafety and Emergency Preparedness Through Fellowship Initiatives

Michael Pentella PhD , D ( ABMM ) Public Health Institutional State Representative

Scott Shone , PhD , HCLD ( ABB ) Public Health Institutional State Representative

Pamela Higgins , PhD Public Health Associate Institutional Member Representative​

The production of this publication was supported by Cooperative Agreements # NU60OE000104 and # NU2HGH000080 , funded by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of , nor an endorsement by , CDC , HHS , or the US Government .

Deborah Severson Public Health Institutional Local Member Representative​

Leslie Wolf , PhD , HCLD ( ABB ) Public Health Institutional Local Member Representative​