MLS/CLS Clinical Year Scholarships

Medical Laboratory Science / Clinical Laboratory Science Clinical Year Scholarships

Scholarships are awarded to MLS/CLS students entering their senior, clinical year of study. Typically 4 or 5 scholarships are awarded. Each scholarship will provide $1,500 to a student during the clinical/internship year for a NAACLS accredited Wisconsin MLS/CLS program. Special consideration is given for students that are ASCLS-WI members. Four-Year Scholarship recipients are not eligible to apply for this Scholarship. Detailed information about applying for the scholarship will be sent to Program Directors after January 1st for distribution to students who will be seniors during the following academic year.

Three of the clinical year scholarships are named in memory of members who contributed significantly to the society and profession:

Mary M. Muckerheide Clinical Year Scholarship – Mary Muckerheide, BS, MT(ASCP) was employed by the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison specializing in hematology research, radioimmunoassay, and was certified in Nuclear Medicine.

Her professional activities included: three-time President of our state society, Chair of numerous Leadership Development Workshops, Scholarship Fund member at large, By-Laws Chair, Newsletter Editor and Region V Nominations committee. Mary also published papers on the Shilling Test, Vitamin B-12 Assay and other RIA procedures. She presented at the International Association for Medical Laboratory Technology meeting in Stockholm, Sweden and participated in medical seminars in China and Scandinavia.

Dr. Ronald Laessig Clinical Year Scholarship – Dr. Laessig was the Director of the Wisconsin State Lab of Hygiene from 1980-2006 and served for 15 years as the Chief of the lab’s Clinical Chemistry section prior to this. Dr. Laessig is probably best known as the father of the “Users’ Courses” that regularly brought together instrument manufacturer reps and their Wisconsin laboratory customers. He mentored a number of Wisconsin laboratorians and was a long-time supporter of ASCLS-WI. He enjoyed our state meetings, and his presentations were lively, entertaining, and educational.

Pat Jakus Clinical Year Scholarship - Pat Jakus, M.A., MT(ASCP), graduated from Marquette University in 1956 with a B.S. in Medical Technology. She earned a Masters degree in Management from Central Michigan University in 1978. Pat spent most of her career at Milwaukee County General Hospital in Milwaukee, rising to the position of Laboratory Manager.

Pat was very active in professional societies at the local and state level – she served as President of the Milwaukee and Wisconsin branches of ASCLS, and was active in numerous committees. Pat studied in multiple countries and attended international hemostasis meetings in Munich, Kyoto, and Sydney.

For decades Pat served on the Board of Directors of the state Scholarship Fund, and was still serving as a consultant to the Board when she passed away in January, 2012. She was instrumental in helping the fund rise to the organization it is today. It is an honor for our Scholarship Fund to name one of our clinical year scholarships after Pat Jakus.