ARC/STSA

Congratulations to AST’s Board, staff, and volunteers on another fantastic national conference! Many thanks to all our dedicated educators, students, practitioners, and partners who stopped by our booth. It was a privilege to visit with you, and inspirational to hear about your work day in and day out to build and maintain quality academic programs, elevate the professions, and put the patient first. Look forward to seeing many of you in Fort Worth for AccredX 2026!

Association of Surgical Technologists

We join our nation in gratitude as we remember and honor the brave men and women who have given their lives in service to our country. We pay tribute to those who served in the military ORs and to those who trained students in military surgical technology programs to care for our wounded soldiers.

The ARC/STSA offices will close at noon MT on Friday, May 22, and remain closed through Monday, May 25, in observance of Memorial Day.

The ARC/STSA is seeking to fill two integral positions on our team -- Communications Manager and Operations Coordinator. Review the full announcement, detailed job descriptions, and application instructions at https://arcstsa.org/announcements/.

Don't miss out on our upcoming education activities. For more information, to register for the upcoming events, or to apply for the Chris Keegan Memorial Educator Scholarship, please click here: https://mailchi.mp/1e9b4e36fb9a/spring_webinars_2026

We hope to see you soon!

A HUGE THANK YOU to our surgical technology and surgical assisting educators during Teacher Appreciation Week! You are rockstars, educating the best and brightest future surgical technologists and surgical assistants.

Calling all students and graduates to give your instructors a well-deserved shout out, sharing the positive impact their dedication has made in your education and career.
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Today's issue with the Annual Report platform has been identified. The platform developers are performing a maintenance update tonight, and the 2026 Annual Report will be available to our programs by 8 a.m. MT tomorrow, Friday, May 1. Thank you for your patience as we work to resolve this issue. Have a wonderful evening!

We have received multiple inquiries from programs this morning indicating they are unable to work on their Annual Reports.

We are actively investigating the issue and will provide updates as soon as more information becomes available.

Thank you for your understanding.

Apply now for the Chris Keegan Memorial Educator Scholarship to receive an AccredX 2026 conference registration and hotel accommodations for two nights.

Don’t wait… the application deadline is June 1!

https://arcstsa.org/scholarships/

Just a quick reminder that that the 2026 Annual Report closes on Monday, June 1. You can access the Annual Report platform, watch a recorded Annual Report walkthrough, or register for a live Office Hour webinar walkthrough on May 14 at https://arcstsa.org/maintaining-accreditation/

Such a privilege to celebrate the essential work of surgical assistants during National Surgical Assistant Week at the 7th Annual ASA/NSAA Joint Conference!

Many thanks to both NSAA and ASA for presenting yet another exceptional conference providing professional development for 200 surgical assistants, including educators from 3 of our 14 accredited surgical assisting programs: Meridian Institute of Surgical Assisting, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, and EVMS at Old Dominion University.

Please join the ARC/STSA to recognize and thank surgical first assistants for their vital contributions to ensure patient safety and operating room efficiency as they support surgeons.