Optometry Student Finishes Fourth in National Quiz Bowl

As the Pennsylvania College of Optometry’s representative in the American Optometric Student Association’s (AOSA) Student Bowl XXXIII, powered by EssilorLuxottica, at Optometry’s Meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, Corey Ryan, PBHS ‘21, ‘25OD, wanted to have fun and make friends from other schools while competing.

And, that’s exactly what he got.

On the evening of June 20, 2024 at Brooklyn Bowl Nashville Concert Hall, Ryan finished fourth out of 26 participants from all of the schools and colleges of optometry that competed in the competitive game-show style tradition designed for students to show off their knowledge of all things optometry.

Ryan described the venue as a modern but rustic nightclub that featured a bowling alley. “There were a ton of students from every school there. It kind of reminded me of a nightclub Super Bowl party. It was a lot of fun,” said Ryan of the themed groups. “Everyone was really hardcore rooting for their school. It was clearly competitive, but in a good way. All the participants were really nice." 

It was Ryan’s first time at the American Optometric Association (AOA) Conference, and he highly recommends it to other students. In addition, he had a personal motive for attending and competing in the quiz bowl.

“It’s hard to teach my son anything if I haven’t experienced it myself. So, I wanted to go for the experience and be able to pass along what I’ve learned to him,” said Ryan. “I was really nervous going into it. I’d never done anything like this. I think what I learned is that when given opportunities, just say yes no matter how fearful you might be. It doesn’t matter how good or bad you might do at something, ultimately, it’s about the experience. If you do great, that’s great. If not, it’s not a big deal.”

Ryan, who graduated from the inaugural Post-baccalaureate program at Salus University, which laid the foundation for him to enter PCO is currently completing his externship at Edmonds Eye Associates, with Pennsylvania offices in Malvern, Philadelphia, Drexel Hill and Horsham.

PCO faculty presentations at the conference included:

• Carlo Pelino, OD ‘94, FAAO, assisatnt professor, co-presenter of “True Emergencies of the Posterior Pole”; co-presenter of “Interprofessional Care of Retina Patients Using Multimodal Imaging”; and co-presenter of “Real World Retina.”
• Randall Thomas, OD ‘81, MPH, FAAO, adjunct, co-presenter of “Therapeutic Strategies in Clinical Eye Care”; co-presenter of Melton-Thomas Clinical Grand Rounds.”
• Walter Whitley, OD, MBA, FAAO, adjunct, co-presenter of “Co-managing Surgical Complications: What Every OD Needs to Know”; co-presenter of “Innovations in Ocular Surface Disease Hands-On Workshop”; co-presenter of “Innovations in Ocular Surface Disease”; co-presenter of “Glaucoma Mythbusters.”
• George Veliky, OD, adjunct, moderator of the Residency Panel.
• Michael Cymbor, OD ‘96, FAAO, adjunct, presenter of Elevated Management of Diabetic Retinopathy.”
• Clark Chang, OD, FAAO, adjunct, co-presenter of “Decoding Early Keratoconus: The New Management Paradigm”; co-presenter of “Growing Your Keratoconus Contact Lens Tool Box”; presenter of “New Wave Thinking on Wavefront Guided Contact Lenses.”
• Steven Sorkin, OD, adjunct, presenter of “Contact Lens Update 2024”; co-presenter of “Specialty CL Showdown.”
• Erin Draper, OD ‘09, Resident ‘10, FAAO, associate professor, presenter of “How and When to Perform a Cranial Nerve Assessment”; co-presenter of “Neurodegenerative Disease: Uncovering the Ocular Connection.” Kelly Malloy, OD '96, FAAO, chief of the Neuro-Ophthalmic Disease Department at The Eye Institute (TEI), co-presenter of “To Refer or Not to Refer (to Neuro)? That is the Question.”

In addition, the Office of Institutional Advancement held an alumni and friends reception on Thursday evening prior to the Student Bowl that attracted approximately 100 guests. Melissa Trego, OD ‘04, Resident ‘09, PhD, PCO dean, Jacqueline Patterson, MPA, CFRE, vice president of Institutional Advancement and Community Relations, along with faculty and staff, informed attendees about the impending merger with Drexel University, which is pending approval by the United States Department of Education, specialized accreditors, and additional third parties.