Radiology techs are in high demand nationally with the need for medical imaging outpacing the supply of licensed staff, especially in rural Colorado, experts say.

That is why Colorado Northwestern Community College has stepped up to offer a new radiology training program in Craig. The next closest training programs are located more than 100 miles away in Edwards and Grand Junction.

This semester the college is offering an Introduction to Radiology course with 14 students enrolled, and that intro class will be offered again during the spring 2026 semester. The introductory class is a prerequisite for a new two-year, five-semester associate degree in applied science for the radiologic technology program that kicks off in the fall semester.

The program is intended to attract students from across Northwest Colorado who will hopefully graduate and fill local jobs, said Jade Bruchez, the program’s director and lead instructor. Participants in the current introductory course include 10 students who attend classes on the Craig campus and four students who attend lectures virtually from the CNCC Rangely campus.

Bruchez, who grew up in Hayden and worked in imaging at the hospitals in Craig and Steamboat Springs, said five of her current students are Moffat County High School students participating as a “Career Exploratory” course.

“Students who wish to make medical imaging their career will be able to stay in the Yampa Valley and likely save money but still receive the same training and licensure as other programs in the state,” Bruchez explained.

The first cohort of associate degree students starting in August could include up to 10 students. The program will include classes in patient care, equipment, radiation biology, pathology and safety.

The summer between freshman and sophomore year in the new program is designed as an internship concentration at a local health care site.

The locations partnering for hands-on clinical experience include Memorial Regional Health in Craig, Pioneers Medical Center in Meeker, Rangely District Hospital, Middle Park Health in Kremmling, and UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center as well as Steamboat Orthopaedic & Spine Institute.

The MRH Specialty Clinic on Russell Street in Craig also is offering its imaging facilities as a lab location.

“Many facilities around our area are excited for the program and trying to do their part,” Bruchez said, noting Pioneers Medical Center donated this week an X-ray machine for a classroom at the Craig campus.

Sanaya Sturm, general radiology manager at Yampa Valley Medical Center, said a lack of training programs and limited class sizes led to shortages of licensed health care professionals, so “this is why CNCC’s radiology technologist program is greatly needed in Northwest Colorado.”

Radiologic technologists make up the third largest group of health care professionals in the nation, according to the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists.

“Imaging is utilized in all phases of medicine from the emergency department and operating rooms to routine outpatient follow-ups,” Sturm said. “The use of imaging is necessary to make quick, lifesaving decisions across the continuum of care and guides practice and interventions for all patients.”

With more radiology techs employed on the Front Range, rural hospitals often must utilize traveling techs, which adds costs for the hospital.

“The cost of hiring traveling radiology techs is extremely high,” Sturm said. “Approximately 50% of the main hospital radiology staff at YVMC is composed of travelers.”

Students who graduate from the CNCC program will be eligible to take the national or state exams to pass to become be a registered technologist. Students may choose to stay in radiography or advance their medical imaging training in specialty fields such as computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, mammography, radiation therapy and ultrasound.

“It’s definitely a well-paying job in high demand and offers a lot of opportunity for growth,” Bruchez said.

“The most exciting thing about the CNCC program is that we have local students who are already embedded in our community enrolling in this program,” Sturm said. “The best value that the CNCC program brings to our community is that we can provide education and job opportunities to individuals who already live in the area and want to serve others. These jobs are a wonderful mix of a fast-paced, hands-on patient care mixed with always working with new technology.”