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In Case You Missed It: April 2019
Lions Club Screening: The Salus chapter of the Lions Club held its annual screening at the Institute for Community Justice – a federally qualified health center that serves a diverse, low income, mostly LGBTQ population - in Philadelphia. Ten Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) students along with Bhawan K Minhas, OD, FAAO, director of PCO’s On-Campus Residency Program, screened 70 individuals.
Toland Scholarship: Congratulations to Andrew Muckin ‘21OD for receiving the Joseph C. Toland Memorial Scholarship. Established in 2017, the scholarship is awarded to a worthy third-year Doctor of Optometry student who is in good academic standing and demonstrates a distinctive ability for providing competent and compassionate care to his/her patients.
SLP Capstone Presentations: Soon-to-be graduates of the University’s Speech-Language-Pathology (SLP) program presented their capstone project posters to an audience in the Hafter Student Community Center’s Bennett Lounge. Each of the projects provided services to a local population in need.
Topics included:
Preceptor Fair: Hosted by the University’s Optometry Externship Program, the annual Preceptor Fair was held on Sunday, April 7, and had approximately 35 preceptors, predominantly from up and down the east coast, but some traveled from as far as Alaska and Canada. About 140 students from the Class of 2021 attended the afternoon meet and greet as well. Preceptors participated in continuing education (CE) and a question and answer session in the morning and met with students who are in the process of selecting sites for their Externship rotations in the afternoon.
Two Preceptors of the Year Awards were also given to Scott DePoe, OD of the Salem VA Medical Center in Salem, Va., and Lindsey Barouh, OD ‘11, of Ophthalmology Physicians & Surgeons in Hatboro, Pa. Preceptors of the Year are nominated by students of the graduating class. This year, these two preceptors were chosen in recognition from an institutional setting and a private/group practice setting.
Physician Assistant Olympics: Students and faculty from the Physician Assistant (PA) Studies program joined six other universities - Pennsylvania College of Osteopathic Medicine, Arcadia University;Drexel University; DeSales University; Jefferson University; and Temple University - for the annual PA Olympics. All together they raised more than $20,000 for the "IM ABLE Foundation," a nonprofit that helps individuals with disabilities live an active and empowered life through adaptive sporting equipment and recreational activities.
AOSA PCO Quiz Bowl: On Friday, April 26 in the Hafter Student Community Center, the stakes were high during the annual competition of the American Optometric Student Association (AOSA) Quiz Bowl. The winner, Ilan Dock ‘21OD,won a $1,000 travel grant to represent the University’s Pennsylvania College of Optometry and compete in the national Essilor ® Optometry Student Bowl – the largest student event held at Optometry’s Meeting in June 2020 in Washington, D.C.. This year, Annie Govan ‘20OD, will compete in St. Louis, Mo. against other students from Colleges and Schools of Optometry to bring home the coveted Ventura Cup.PCO judges were Laine Higa, OD, assistant professor; PCO alumnus James Deom, OD, and Bhawan Minhas, OD, FAAO, assistant professor with Alissa Coyne, OD, FAAO, assistant professor as the evening’s emcee.
Penn-Del AER Conference: Faculty, staff and alumni of the University's Blindness and Low Vision (BLVS) programs attended the Alumni Reception during the Pennsylvania-Delaware Chapter of the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (Penn-Del AER) Conference on Wednesday, April 24 in Harrisburg, Pa. The conference is held annually and brings together nationally respected professionals who present on a variety of topics currently trending in the field of education and rehabilitation of the blind and visually impaired. This year’s highlights included a presentation on Professional Development and Leadership, and other clinically focused topics such as: Supporting Braille Users in High School Math & Science and Educational Rights and Realities of Blind Students.
The Alumni Reception, held at O’Reilly’s Taproom in the Best Western Premier Central Hotel & Conference Center, highlighted various “first” accomplishments held by the BLVS program including the first international cohort, the first Vision Rehabilitation Therapy (VRT) cohort, the first summer camp, and the launching of the first micro-credential course. Opening a variety of courses to non-matriculated students were also announced.
