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Original Release Date: October 24, 2019
In episode six of our 2019 DNA season, Just Science interviews Leslie Parke and Jamie Haas of Signature Science, a private DNA laboratory based in Austin, Texas, about increasing workflow efficiency in their lab.
From twenty cases a month to thousands of cases per year, Signature Science has shown significant growth in their lab’s capacity. By introducing automation and eliminating unnecessary steps in the DNA analysis process, Parke and Haas have proven that there are always ways to improve the efficiency of a forensic laboratory. Listen along as they discuss the benefits of eliminating serological testing and the impact that automation has had on their lab in this episode of Just Science.
This episode of Just Science is funded by the National Institute of Justice’s Forensic Technology Center of Excellence [Award 2016-MU-BX-K110].
Related Resources
Guest Biography
Leslie Parke, Director of the Forensic DNA Laboratory at Signature Science, LLC in Austin, Texas. She took the role of Director last year after serving as the Quality Assurance Manager since the laboratory's inception in 2012. She is a is a member of the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors, a credentialed Project Management Professional (PMP) through the Project Management Institute [certification #1406178, since 2011] and a Certified Quality Auditor through the American Society of Quality [certificate #21493, since 1999]. She also is a Certified Scrum Master. She has over 30 years of experience in the environmental consulting business, over 20 years as the project manager of multi-million dollar, multi-disciplinary federal government contracts, and is Principal Scientist at Signature Science.
Jamie Haas, the backup Technical Leader who supports and advances the technical progress and upgrades within the laboratory. She has been involved in every validation effort since our accreditation, and was recently promoted to staff supervisor over the forensic analysts. Prior to joining the forensic practice, she worked on classified, cutting edge research and development projects for the Federal Government focused on improving DNA testing methodology. She attended the week long STRmix training then provided a two and a half day internal training on STRmix. She has been instrumental in helping augment our capabilities and ensuring the best practices are applied consistently.
The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this podcast episode are those of the presenter(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Contact us at ForensicCOE@rti.org with any questions and subscribe to our newsletter for notifications.
