2

President’ s & CEO’ s Message

Career Pathways

4 The Power of Early Exposure

5 One Mentor’ s Rationale for Hosting Fellows and Interns

9 Transformation, Timing, Technology, Timber: A New Era for Public Health Laboratory Design

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

6 Public Health Laboratory Ambassadors Collaborate to Enhance Outreach in Oregon

Industry Matters

8 Advancing Public Health Genomics Through Collaboration and Modernization

5

8

FEATURE

10 The Next Pandemic: How Public Health Laboratories Are Improving Readiness and Response

9

10

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.

LAB MATTERS STAFF

Gynene Sullivan, MA Editor

Brittany Robertson Art Director

David Fouse Advisor

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

2025 – 2026 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Scott Shone, PhD, HCLD( ABB) President

Sharon Massingale, PhD, HCLD / CC( ABB) President-elect

APHL PROGRAMS

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

Environmental Health

16 Con-GRAD-ulations! Laboratory Scientists Help Revive Nationwide Radiochemistry Workforce

17 Correcting Fentanyl Misinformation

Food Safety

18 CaliciNet Outbreak Support Centers Provide a Laboratory Safety Net

Global Health

19 Sustainable Genomics Through Strategic Costing

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

Anthony Tran, ​ DrPH, PhD, MPH, D( ABMM), MT( ASCP) Public Health Institutional State Representative

Luke Short, PhD, HCLD( ABB) Public Health Institutional Local Member Representative​

17

Infectious Diseases

20 Preparing the Next Generation of Bioinformatics Leaders

21 Stepping on the GAS: Accelerating Group A Strep Characterization for Improved Outbreak Response

Projects in this publication were supported by Cooperative Agreements # NU2GGH002365, NU2GGH002485, NU2GGH002494, NU2HGH000112, NU2HGH00032, NU2HGH00080, NU2RGH001917, NU38PW000005, NU3HCK000003, NU47CD000001 and NU60OE000104 funded by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention( CDC); U18FD007046 and U2FFD008200 funded by the US Food & Drug Administration( FDA); and U22MC24078 funded by the Health Resources & Services Administration( HRSA). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, CDC, FDA, HRSA, the US Department of Health and Human Services or the US Government.

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

Pamela Higgins, PhD Public Health Associate Institutional Member Representative

Megan Crumpler, PhD, HCLD( ABB) Past President

Scott Becker, MS Ex Officio, Chief Executive Officer, APHL