A New Home, A New Hope for Future Health Professionals

It’s a Tuesday morning on Widener’s Chester campus and a group of students find themselves in the lab practicing their ultrasound skills, taking on the role of diagnostic medical sonographer or patient.

The cool gel glides over the patients’ skin as the monitors hum to life with imagery. Meanwhile, instructors move between the four tables, offering guidance and insight.

Doors away, future radiologic technicians are in a classroom honing their skills and learning from those who have worked in the field for decades.

Both groups are preparing themselves for careers in the fast-paced health field, readying themselves to be there for patients as they experience life’s biggest and, at times, scariest moments.

It’s a far cry from where these programs were just one year earlier – in the midst of uncertainty as Crozer-Chester Medical Center, their physical home, was about to shut its doors.

Since 2012, Widener had partnered with Crozer in nearby Upland to offer both Diagnostic Medical Sonography, or DMS, and Radiologic Technology, known as rad tech. Though housed and operated by Crozer, students graduated with Widener credentials.

That all changed in May 2025, when financial difficulties caused Crozer to cease operations.

But Widener was not willing to let these programs end. In a matter of weeks, the university had organized and relocated students, faculty, and equipment to campus just 1.5 miles away, providing DMS and rad tech a soft landing and a new home.

“Widener was committed to bringing these programs over to campus. The university knew that Crozer was struggling struggling and, with the help of various colleagues, we created a plan in case the worst outcome occurred,” said Sharmane Walker, executive director for the Center for Continuing Studies. “These programs are too important for the university, our students and the community at large to let them fall to the wayside.”

Walker also highlighted the faculty from both programs for their hard work and resilience. 

“We couldn’t have accomplished this move without their dedication and willingness to adapt."

Joseph Renzi ’27 was part of the last cohort of students to begin the rad tech program at the Crozer site. He was just getting used to being at Crozer and was faced with adapting again to Widener. 

“Widener made it very easy to transition for our classes and made us all feel welcome,” said Renzi. “They made coming over very easy for us and kept life simple with their ability to let us use certain classrooms.”

While the transition was challenging, one year later, DMS and rad tech are thriving in their new home. DMS occupies three classrooms in Founders Hall, including a scan lab that now has four ultrasound machines, with more on the way. Rad tech, also based in Founders as well as the University Center, is planning a new radiology lab on campus.

While losing Crozer has been a major blow to the community and its medical needs, moving DMS and rad tech to Widener has yielded a few silver linings.

Both programs were welcomed to campus with open arms. Employees are now Widener employees, and students benefit from the perks of being on a college campus, including the resources and support services. And both programs are seeing a growth in student interest and enrollment.

“The quality of students and amount of interest we’re seeing has increased and I attribute that to the move,” said Megan Stone, DMS program director. “The culture of Widener is nice, laid back, and there’s an element of fun being on a college campus with a lot of flexibility.”

Maeve McQueeney ’26 began her Widener career as a traditional four-year student, entering the DMS program her junior year. So, she was always tied to campus. But the same was not true for all her classmates.

Now, said McQueeney, “we’re all in one spot. You have everything you can possibly need – study rooms, the library, even a Starbucks.”

Both Stone, and Judy Crampton, rad tech program director, had lifelong connections to Crozer.

Stone’s mother worked there for 25 years, and her own daughter was born in the hospital. Stone herself attended Crozer’s ultrasound school, graduating as a diagnostic medical sonographer in 2006.

Crampton earned her own radiologic technologist certification through the Crozer program, and worked as a radiologic technologist in the hospital before going on to earn her associate’s degree from Widener in 1982. She became an instructor and, eventually, a clinical coordinator at Crozer’s program.

The closure was devastating to both. But the promise of a new home softened the blow.

“It was heartbreaking. I had a numb feeling,” said Stone, when the hospital system shuttered its doors. “But at same time knew we were going to move to Widener and that was exciting.”

Both directors credit Walker with being instrumental in making the landing as smooth as possible, including finding space for the programs.

“People at Widener have been so friendly and everyone is always willing to help,” said Crampton. “I tell everyone we were the lucky ones. We were able to come over to Widener, and I credit Sharmane for that.”

Adds Stone: “Sharmane worked very hard to make this happen, as did Provost Mark Nicosia. And our students did really well with the adjustment,” said Stone, noting a cohort was in the middle of its programs when students had to shift gears and locales.

The Widener DMS program is 20 months long. By the end, students log 1,500 clinical hours, preparing them to work as sonographers in a variety of settings, including hospitals and outpatient facilities, and with a variety of patient populations.

As a bachelor-granting program – one of only a few in the region – the Widener DMS program offers graduates opportunities beyond the traditional clinical route, including the opportunity to pursue teaching, management, sales and marketing, and more.

Rad tech is a 24-month program in which students log over 1,600 clinical hours, which prepares graduates for careers in radiology including specializations in computed tomography or CT, MRI, X-ray, mammography, and related fields. As the only rad tech program in Delaware County, Widener offers opportunities for students to complete their prerequisites at the university or at several partner institutions with pathways into the program.

After a year of transition, the future of both programs is bright.

Both DMS and rad tech are eying additional technology and lab opportunities for students, and working to build their clinical placement sites, which were adversely affected by the closure of Crozer.

DMS is thinking outside the box when it comes to maternal fetal medicine, a challenging placement to secure. To help make up for the shortfall, Widener will be offering pregnant women from the community free fetal ultrasounds in its scan lab, to give students the hands-on experience they need. The initiative will allow the mothers to be, who must be are under a doctor’s care and have already undergone an ultrasound with normal results, an opportunity to get another peek at their babies.

The goal is to position Widener students on the best path possible and expose them to a broader range of situations and patient populations. 

“It makes our students very well-rounded. They’re used to working on so many different pieces of equipment that when they graduate and they have the connections and skills needed to enter the workforce. They’re more seasoned and adaptable,” said Crampton.

Of the seven students who graduated the DMS program in May 2026, all have secured employment, including McQueeney, who is beginning her career as a perinatal sonographer in her home state of Maine. She will work with high-risk pregnant women.

Renzi, now a year and a half into his time in the program, has been working as a tech aide in the CT department at Riddle Hospital in Media, giving him an opportunity to apply the skills he’s learning in the classroom to real-life experiences right away.

“Working there has made me an even better student and much more comfortable on the clinical floor since I have so much more patient interaction.”

While his experience in the program has had to involve flexibility and resilience, Renzi feels that the uniqueness of the experience will lead himself and his classmates to be the best possible technologists in the future.

“My experience at Widener has been great! I would absolutely recommend this program to anyone considering a rad tech degree.”