Featured News

Every day College of Health Professions students, alumni, faculty and staff do extraordinary things. Read more about our latest achievements below.

Turning experience into opportunity for future MLS students

Before she was guiding prospective students through the Medical Laboratory Sciences program at Virginia Commonwealth University, Anood Habahbeh was one of them and searching for direction.

Anood HabahbehAnood Habahbeh

New Physical Therapy Faculty member discusses experience, what she wants to bring to the college

One of the newest faculty members at the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Health Professions is Alicia Flach, DPT, PT, EdD, who serves as an associate professor and assistant director of clinical education in the Department of Physical Therapy. Flach, who joined CHP last November, has been instructing physical therapy programs since 2014.

Alicia FlachAlicia Flach

From rural roots to statewide advocacy: One undergraduate’s path in radiation sciences

Three years ago, Sonny Patterson Jr. arrived at Virginia Commonwealth University from the small, rural community of Stuarts Draft, Va., bringing with him a strong work ethic, interest in health care and sense of purpose.

Sonny Patterson Jr. shaking hands with man in graduate robesSonny Patterson Jr. shaking hands with man in graduate robes

Rethinking how future lab technicians connect what they learn

In the VCU Medical Laboratory Sciences program, innovation goes beyond the lab into how students are mastering the material. Through a growing focus on the scholarship of learning, faculty are studying, testing and refining new ways to teach complex science – ensuring students don’t just absorb information, but truly understand and apply it.

Medical laboratory science student holds up a petri dish for inspectionMedical laboratory science student holds up a petri dish for inspection

Annual Prest Lecture hosts Rev. Dr. Anastasia Holman from the Indiana University Health System

​In April, the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Health Professions Patient Counseling Department held its annual Prest Lecture, with Rev. Dr. Anastasia Holman, director of Chaplaincy Education for the Indiana University (IU) Health System, as the guest lecturer.

Rev. Dr. Anastasia Holman, director of Chaplaincy Education for the Indiana University (IU) Health System and Rev. Marilyn J.D. Barnes, Rev. Robert B. Lantz, Chair of Patient Counseling.Rev. Dr. Anastasia Holman, director of Chaplaincy Education for the Indiana University (IU) Health System and Rev. Marilyn J.D. Barnes, Rev. Robert B. Lantz, Chair of Patient Counseling.

VCU Physical Therapy shines at APTA Combined Sections Meeting in Anaheim

Faculty, students and alumni from VCU’s Department of Physical Therapy left the 2026 American Physical Therapy Association Combined Sections Meeting in Anaheim feeling energized, connected and proud of the program’s growing national impact.

Chelsea Duppen standing with conference attendee in front of posterChelsea Duppen standing with conference attendee in front of poster

Technologists obtain bachelor’s degrees through online program

Returning to school can feel like a lofty proposition, especially for full-time health care professionals already balancing work, family and finances. Through its degree completion program, VCU’s Department of Radiation Sciences offers registered technologists a flexible, fully online pathway to complete their bachelor’s degrees in clinical radiation sciences without stepping away from their careers.

Graduate Angela WisemanGraduate Angela Wiseman

Delivering pediatric PT through a trauma-informed lens

After graduating from Georgia State University with an art history degree, Rachel Burch Belcher found herself at a crossroads. She had planned to pursue museum education but, after being waitlisted for graduate school, took a job as a nanny. The role brought her into the life of a young child with significant developmental delays, a turning point she didn’t yet recognize.

Rachel Burch BelcherRachel Burch Belcher

Symposium reimagines how to bring research into communities

When researchers gather for a conference, the format is often familiar: presentations, brief Q&As and hurried conversations over coffee. But at Virginia Commonwealth University, Waganesh “Waggy” Zeleke is intentionally disrupting that model.

HEARTFUL Lab Conference attendees pose togetherHEARTFUL Lab Conference attendees pose together

Stop Saying These 12 Things About Aging—Especially to Yourself

Every time Tracey Gendron gives a talk about aging, at least one well-intentioned person approaches her afterwards and offers up the same line: “I’m 70, but I feel 50.” (Time Magazine)

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Contact Malorie Burkett at mgburkett@vcu.edu or (804) 828-7247.