Dr. Marianne Van Deursen, Vice President of Academics at Warren County Community College, was recently elected to the national Medical Assisting Education Review Board (MAERB), which works to accredit medical assisting education across the country’s postsecondary school systems. 

She joins the Board in January 2020 for a two-year term. 

“Having been recruited as a possible candidate was an honor in itself,” said Dr. Van Deursen, who has been with WCCC for 23 years, “but being elected from a pool of national candidates was an even greater surprise.” 

Dr. Van Deursen began at WCCC as an adjunct instructor in 1996 and worked her way up to Medical Assisting Coordinator, then Assistant Dean, Dean of Academics, and, now, Vice President of Academics. 

She stated that serving as a member of this prestigious national board will afford her an opportunity to utilize her leadership and curriculum development skills to help foster continued strong relationships, strengthen and improve medical assisting curricula, and serve as a liaison between the Commission on the Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP), MAERB, the American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA), and the institutions of higher learning that offer over 2,000 medical assisting training programs across the U.S. 

But, she added, “Most importantly, I am proud to represent Warren County Community College on a national level.” 

Working closely with the American Association of Medical Assistants, MAERB helps standardize medical assisting curricula across the nation’s postsecondary schools by evaluating programs against current standards endorsed by sponsoring organizations and CAAHEP, review the accepted standards at regular intervals to ensure they are up to date, and work with other organizations to develop new standards as needed. Additionally, the Board provides support to educators through workshops and information dispersal. As part of CAAHEP, the Board also makes accreditation recommendations for programs applying for recognition. 

In her time at WCCC, Dr. Van Deursen has worked closely with its own Medical Assisting Program, an accredited program that continues to realize a 90 percent  average passing rate on the AAMA’s CMA certification examination and equally high job placement rates. It is only one of four CAAHEP accredited programs in New Jersey. 

Of the program and its success rates, Dr. Van Deursen said, “this is a short-term investment for long-term employment with job security in a field that continues to grow. We have an outstanding  staff of well credentialed and dedicated faculty who prepare our students for their entry into the healthcare delivery team.” 

Students wishing to interview for a January 2020 entry should contact Dr. Van Deursen at 908-835-2430. Financial assistance may be available for either credit or continuing education credentials in this program.  Degree seeking students may be eligible via the 2019/2020 FAFSA application for Spring that includes access to the New Jersey Community College Opportunity Grant for households with an income of $0-$65,000; non-credit career track certificate seeking students who may be unemployed, underemployed, working part-time or receiving public assistance should call today for more information. 

Warren County Community College is located in scenic Warren County, New Jersey, with two campuses offering degree, certificate, continuing education, workforce development, and community enrichment programs. For more about the College visit www.warren.edu.