Salus University Alumni Magazine Spring 2016

THE FUTURE OF HEALTH SCIENCE SINCE 1919.

SPRING 2016

THE ALUMNI MAGAZINE OF SALUS UNIVERSITY 1

Inside this Issue

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From President Mittelman

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Salus Young Alumni

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Thank You, Dr. Audrey Smith

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Alumni News

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University News

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Class Notes

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In Memoriam

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Missing Alumni

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Back

Thank You, Dr. Bill Monaco Calendar of Coming Events

COVER PHOTO: Six Salus physician assistant alumni are on staff at Penn Medicine Orthopaedic Surgery.

Shown on the cover are (from front to back): Christine Wilson McAndrew, MMS ‘09, PA-C; Lauren Sutcliffe, MMS ‘14, PA-C; Gina Hayes, MMS ‘14, PA-C and Gregory Ranalli, MMS ‘13, PA-C. Not pictured are: Brittany Klugh Coleman, MMS ‘09, PA-C and Allison Huss, MMS ‘14, PA-C.

PUBLISHED BY SALUS UNIVERSITY

Michael H, Mittelman, OD ’80, MPH, FAAO, FACHE President

Lynne C. Corboy Director of Development

Jamie Lemisch Director, Alumni Relations and Annual Giving

Alexis R. Abate Director of Communications

EDITOR

Peggy Shelly Coordinator, Publications

CONTRIBUTORS

Jamie Lemisch, Michael H. Mittelman, Kenneth W. Savitski

EDITORIAL ASSISTANCE Alexis R. Abate, Lesley Anders, Taylor Buotte ‘19AUD, Lynne C. Corboy, Karen Greave, Kathleen M. Huebner, Jamie Lemisch, William A. Monaco, Wendy Woodward

The Alumni Magazine of Salus University is published bi-annually for alumni, parents and friends. Please send comments, ­contributions and address changes to: Office of Institutional Advancement Salus University 8360 Old York Road Elkins Park, PA 19027 Salus University by choice, declares and reaffirms its policy of complying with federal and state legislation and does not in any way discriminate in education programs, employment or in service to the public on the basis of race, color, creed or religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, physical or mental disabilities, or veteran status. In addition, the University complies with federal regulations issued under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Questions concerning any of the above policies should be addressed to: Maura Keenan, Affirmative Action Officer, Salus University, 8360 Old York Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027, (215) 780-1267 Office of Alumni Relations (215) 780-1391 alumni@salus.edu www.salus.edu

DESIGN

Dale Parenti Design

PHOTOGRAPHY

John Dolores, Celeste Gomez, ‘19OD, Kathleen M. Huebner, Dan Z. Johnson, Peggy Shelly

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From President Mittelman When an El Niño develops, it can start a “chain reaction” in the atmosphere influencing the weather in places much farther away from the tropical, equatorial Pacific Ocean.

The winter of El Niño is winding down as I write this. We had snow overnight here on campus and expect temperatures in the seventies next week. Right now it appears as though spring may be hijacked and we may go right into summer!

The reality of course, is that we all know from past experience not to count on the weather. We are fortunate in that there are many other areas of life that remain constant and reliable. At the risk of sounding confusing, I must say that one of the constants at Salus is that something is always changing. We never would want to become complacent. For many this can be disconcerting, but here at Salus change is often good – a sign that something or someone is searching for ways to improve a space, a program, a process or a procedure.

We continue to actively pursue ways in which we can make improvements, changes or revisions that will enhance the learning experiences of our students. Our Learning Resource Center (LRC) renovation planning is moving along very nicely. The LRC will be a vibrant University centerpiece that will foster learning, collaboration and study. Design developments are now being finalized in preparation for choosing a contractor.

Additionally, we have met with our architectural firm, Daley and Jalboot, about the new Optometry Clinical Skills Lab project. The timeline is now under discussion and work on the swing space – where Salus PCO students will work during the renovation – has begun. Both of these projects will significantly influence the quality of our students’ learning experience and, like El Niño, the effects will continue to be felt much further away from Elkins Park, thanks to our alumni.

In this issue you will read about Dr. Audrey Smith, dean of our College of Education and Rehabilitation. Audrey will begin a sabbatical later this year and return to teach part-time in 2017. Audrey introduced blindness and low vision studies programs to PCO in 1983.

From those beginnings and, after years of careful cultivation, a College has grown that remains the only institution in the world to offer all of the blindness and low vision studies degrees that we offer Salus students. Thank you, Audrey, for your foresight, fortitude and unstinting efforts to improve the world of those with visual and sensory impairments.

I also want to wish “fair winds and following seas” to a fellow Navy veteran and our associate dean of Graduate Programs in Biomedicine, Dr. William Monaco. Bill worked tirelessly with Dr. Tony Di Stefano to create our Public Health programs and also taught at TEI and in our international optometry program for many years. His service to our country and to this University has been exemplary and we are fortunate that he will continue to teach public health distance education courses and mentor our PhD students after he and his wife settle in Tampa. Thank you, Bill, for your dedication and commitment.

It’s an exciting time at the University, as we continue to plan for these construction projects, update our optometric and audiology curricula, and prepare to launch our capital campaign to help fund all of these improvements. In addition, daily activities and our regular events continue as well: admissions recruiting, alumni weekend, spring commencement and a host of community events where Salus will have a presence.

In this season of new beginnings, I thank you for your past support and ask that you remain steadfast as we educate and train the leaders of tomorrow. El Niño aside, our alumni remain the most important element of the Salus “chain reaction.”

Sincerely,

Michael H. Mittelman, OD ’80, MPH, FAAO, FACHE RADM, USN (ret)

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SALUS YOUNG ALUMNI FROM THE FIRST GRADUATING CLASS – Pennsylvania State College of Optometry, Class of 1922 – to the most recent – Salus University Class of 2015 – our alumni have brought honor and prestige to the names PCO and Salus for almost a century. We have more than 12,500 alumni around the world and 5,641 of them graduated between 2005 and 2015. It is not surprising that many of our alumni are leaders in their communities and professions, given that their career choices serve to improve people’s lives.

While we celebrate the accomplishments of all alumni in all programs, the focus here is on some of our young alumni who graduated between 2005 and 2015. Many of them have chosen challenging career paths – and all of them live up to our legacy and tradition of leadership begun in 1919.

The University’s degree programs – optometry; blindness and low vision; audiology; physician assistant; public health; occupational therapy, and speech-language pathology, are all high-demand professions.

Our young alumni have and will continue to see an increase in the projected growth rate of their chosen careers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a seven percent (7%) growth rate for all US jobs from 2014 to 2024. The projected growth rate for Salus professions during that same period ranges from twenty-seven percent (27%) to thirty percent (30%).

With a heart and smile as big as he is tall, ALFRED MWAMBA, AuD ’15, is the first – and currently only – certified audiologist in his native Zambia, which has a population of 15 million. His certification number is 00001.

Visiting audiologists who come to Zambia tend to stay for just 12 to 18 months, according to Dr. Mwamba, and the government’s minimum residency period for certification is 24 months. A practitioner with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communicative Sciences and Disorders from Hampton University, and a Master of Science degree in Hearing Sciences from Purdue University, Dr. Mwamba has a clear vision of how he wants to change the delivery of hearing care in Zambia.

Dr. Mwamba is an audiologist at the Beit CURE Trust Children’s Hospital, situated on the outskirts of Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, where he, his wife, Sheeba, and their two-year old son reside. There are an estimated 50,000+ people in Lusaka alone with disabling ear and hearing problems and more than fifty percent (50%) of those problems are due to preventable conditions.

Alfred Mwamba’s vision is “2MillionBy2030.” He believes passionately that by training more nurses over the next 15 years, two million people can be helped by the year 2030. In developing countries, where an ailment such as a perforated eardrum can prove fatal, this would save lives and change countless other lives for the better.

Converting his hospital office into a classroom, he currently teaches a nurse from Cameroon, one nurse from Gambia, and one nurse and two technicians from Zambia. “In creating a new program that no one knows and understands, sometimes one has to take bold steps,” he notes. He has begun to think in larger terms and says with a smile, “I have actually decided to build a college, so that we don’t have to squeeze into my office.” He has tried to get his program into several universities with little success so far, “because they only provide programs which are at bachelor’s degree level.” He notes that “there are very few audiology programs in Africa, and South Africa is the only country with a degree-granting program in the sub-Saharan region.”

Pictured at right with President Mittelman and Dean Bray (far right, rows 1 and 2) are faculty and the Audiology Class of 2015.

Dr. Mwamba is on the right in the last row.

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In order to create a sequential training model that he hopes will one day culminate in a degree program, Dr. Mwamba has begun a fundraising campaign to build a campus to train hearing instrument specialists as well as speech therapists and “who knows what else in the future.” Beit CURE Hospital has donated land, so now, in addition to seeing patients and training his students, he focuses on raising $3 million to provide those “2MillionBy2030” professionals with a training facility.

Christine McAndrew (standing) working with fellow Salus alumna Allison Huss, MMS ‘14, PA-C.

He acknowledges the challenges and problems and notes that they “require a different set of thinking,” adding that creating a new training institution to meet this need seemed like the most logical thing to do. Dr. Mwamba explains in order to attain his goal of “creating a sequential-training model that will one day culminate in a degree program,” he has to become “bold and creative.” For his Salus teachers and classmates, there is little doubt that he will succeed.

CHRISTINE WILSON McANDREW, MMS ’09, PA-C As a member of the University’s inaugural physician assistant class with an undergraduate degree in athletic training from West Chester University, Christine (Wilson) McAndrew, MMS ’09, PA-C, wanted to specialize in orthopedics after graduation. During one of her student clinical rotations, she briefly considered another specialty but came back to orthopedics, which proved fortunate for one little boy from Maryland who lost his hands and feet to sepsis when he was two years old.

In her first position after graduation – general orthopedics at Mercy-Fitzgerald Hospital – Ms. McAndrew found herself the first and only physician assistant (PA) in the orthopedic department. She gained a lot of experience during her two and a half years there. She came to Penn Medicine three and a half years ago, as physician assistant to Dr. Scott Levin and supervisor of Advanced Practice in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery. Here she discovered, not only was she not the first PA in the department, but Dr. Levin had done a residency and fellowship at Duke University Medical Center, where the physician assistant concept originated and the profession was born.

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Salus Young Alumni (continued) In July 2015, Ms. McAndrew was an integral part of the Penn Medicine/Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) team that trained together for eighteen months and then performed the world’s first pediatric bilateral hand transplant on eight-year-old Zion Harvey. As the physician assistant to Dr. Scott Levin, lead surgeon on the transplant team and director of the Hand Transplantation Program at CHOP, she was closely involved with the entire historic undertaking.

The ten-hour surgery required a forty-member multidisciplinary team of physicians, nurses and other staff from plastic and reconstructive surgery, orthopedic surgery, anesthesiology and radiology.

The Penn Medicine transplant team performed their first adult transplant in 2011 and is now in the process of preparing for possibly two more. As Ms. McAndrew explains, “There is a lot that must happen before a patient is confirmed as a good transplant candidate.” She is a member of the interdisciplinary team whose selection process involves detailed research, multiple tests, careful evaluations and much discussion before a patient is considered a candidate. A member of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), Ms. McAndrew was interviewed by the AAPA for an article about the double transplant for their December journal issue. In May she will present to PA students at the national conference of the AAPA on orthopedic surgery and her career.

Reproduced from the December 2015 issue of PA Professional; AAPA.org

When asked about her work/life balance, this mother of a ten-month old daughter notes that her husband works for the federal government and travels quite a bit, so family time is important. “My secret is to leave work at work and to leave personal life at home,“ she says. “My weekends are dedicated to my family.” As for her daily activities, she adds, “I prefer the fast pace here (Penn Medicine Department of Orthopaedic Surgery),” which proves useful given her typical day.

In addition to being Dr. Levin’s PA, Ms. McAndrew is responsible for the other thirty physician assistants on the Penn Medicine Orthopaedic Surgery team, five of whom are Salus graduates. Each of the PAs on the service assists a physician in addition to seeing their own patients. When asked about her supervisory responsibilities Ms. McAndrew explains, “I’m part of the interview process and then I provide orientation and mentoring,” noting that she is not an administrator. Given that she assists Dr. Levin, who may see forty-five to sixty patients a day during his clinic hours, and sees her own fifteen to twenty-eight patients on days when she has her own clinic hours, there is little time for administration. There is also no doubt that Chrissy McAndrew is definitely up to the task.

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TIMOTHY BROWN, OD ’10 AND SHERITA SEWARD BROWN, OD ’10 College sweethearts Tim Brown and Sherita Seward came to PCO from their native South Carolina. Handling optometry school can be daunting enough without any added distractions, but these two student leaders also managed a wedding, a class presidency (Tim), several part-time jobs, founded a new chapter of a student organization (OASC – Optometric Association for the Support of Children), held active memberships in several other student organizations, won the PCO Eyedol talent contest (Sherita) and had two children – all before graduating in 2010.

Life after commencement has not slowed its pace nor kept this couple from being involved in their children’s schools and their church. Daughter Tycianna is now eight and Timothy III, TJ, is six. Both Doctors Brown practice full-time. After working in a private practice since graduation and specializing in vision therapy, Dr. Sherita Brown expected to open her own practice at the end of March. In addition to practicing at Tippett Eye Care in Augusta, GA, Dr. Tim Brown is also a leader with Avon, as he consistently expands his own “Team Consistency,” and garners recognition for his success within that organization.

When asked how work/life balance is achieved, Dr. Sherita Brown says with a smile, “The secret is that there really is no secret. We are big on our faith. The only way we are able to balance everything is through God’s help and much prayer.” She adds, “Communication is also key, since Tim and I are both pretty busy. We have to be able to communicate well to ensure that our schedules don’t conflict with family engagements and other important activities.”

Dr. Tim Brown notes, “Realize that a day in optometry is filled with unexpected situations – either with patient care, staff, or personal issues. You have to gear the mind to push through the distractions, challenges, disappointments, and things that can try to knock you off track.”

When asked what advice they might have for new graduates, Dr. Sherita Brown says, “… know your worth when it comes to considering job offers and don’t be afraid to negotiate even though you may be fresh out of school.” She advises, “Be confident in yourself and go after any goals that you have

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Salus Young Alumni (continued) set for yourself and don’t let anything deter you from them.” Dr. Tim Brown adds, “Your talents, knowledge, and skills are great… but don’t forget to reach back and be a guide to someone else. Provide uplift. Learn to see things from a different perspective so that you are able to work well with a variety of people from different backgrounds, attitudes, and personalities. Never forget to enjoy your career and enjoy life.” With their strong faith, commitment to family and positive outlook, Drs. Tim and Sherita Brown are clear on their priorities and where they are going.

FAITH CHABEDI, OD, MPH ’15 Dr. Faith Chabedi initiated a non-governmental organization (NGO) that provides eye care to underprivileged children in her native South Africa prior to her enrollment in the Salus MPH program. An NGO is an organization independent of any form of government intervention – even if government funded – with specific objectives that are oriented to bring about desirable change in a given community or area or situation.

As an optometrist she says, “I see a connection between the lack of health information in South Africa (except on HIV) and poor treatment compliance due to a lack of health literacy and effective communication.” She wants to fill that gap.

Dr. Chabedi gives talks to educate, influence and lobby for eye care and health as human rights.

Her MPH capstone project encouraged her to “ask questions about things happening around me, especially those impacted by my profession.” South Africa has less information about eye care and there is an opportunity to fill the gap by conducting research to provide answers. Dr. Chabedi notes, “When I was in (optometry) school I thought it would be easier to leave private practice and concentrate completely on public health.” The reality is that she continues to practice optometry, combining that profession with her public health background which she notes, “gave me the confidence to speak from researched information.”

A current member and past president of the South African Optometric Association, Dr. Chabedi is also a senior clinical advisor for Special Olympics Opening Eyes Africa Region, a volunteer post near and dear to her heart. Her advice for new graduates is to volunteer, as the experience can also provide an opportunity to serve as well as to acquire practice hours.

As for work/life balance, Dr. Chabedi says, “I have three children. My activities revolve around them, to meet their needs both at home and at school.” Admitting that “this is just not easy,” Dr. Chabedi says she has learned to seek help and to do “only what I need to do and leave the rest to the delegated parties with accountability.” While she admits it is not a perfect setup, it works for this busy woman who is committed to making big changes.

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KATE HARTNETT, MSOTR/L ’15 When you are a brand new occupational therapist who serves five different schools within a school district and needs supplies for which there is no budget, what do you do? You might do what Kate Hartnett, MSOT ’15 did: choose an online fundraising site, put your story and needs out there and get the donations needed to equip yourself with supplies to help your students with special needs live life to the fullest.

Working for the Henderson (NC) County Public Schools in three elementary, one middle and one high school, Ms. Hartnett notes that while her students are a diverse group of individuals with unique needs and abilities, all of them have the potential to enjoy meaningful activities and benefit from occupational therapy to meet their educational needs. “They face challenges throughout their day which can impede their learning… I work with a diverse group of children who are diagnosed with disabilities ranging from autism, to Duchenne’s, Prader Willi, Osteogenesis Imperfecta, and Down Syndrome, as well as social-emotional disabilities…my goal is to facilitate their educational process through sensory integration.”

Kate Hartnett, winner of the 2014-2015 Thomas L. Lewis Leadership Excellence Scholarship and recipient of the 2015 American Occupational Therapy Foundation Alice Jantzen Memorial Scholarship, is now a committed therapist whose ingenuity provided her with the equipment necessary to teach her students to be their best.

EMILY WEBER PARKER, MMS ’09, PA-C One of the real dilemmas facing many of our young alumni is what to do when planning a family. Should you work part-time or full-time or not at all? It’s an issue that is played out in homes across the country, not just in those belonging to Salus graduates. This is a highly personal and subjective matter only settled by the persons involved. A Salus alumna who made the choice to work part-time for now shares her experiences.

Also a member of the inaugural physician assistant class, Emily Parker worked full time in family practice from October 2009 to January 2014. In her first job, she gained invaluable experience working with a diverse patient population ranging from young families to retirees. After that, Ms. Parker began working at another family practice where the patient population was predominantly older adults in a rural setting.

After the birth of daughter Lillian Grace in September 2013, Ms. Parker made the decision to go part-time at the end of her twelve-week maternity leave. While she enjoyed the practice, her co-workers and the families she treated, she explains that “it became increasingly difficult to find work/home balance. I had a very busy and rather complicated patient panel that would require me to finish most of my charts in the evening hours after work. I would only have a small amount of time I could spend with Lily before her bedtime and also needed to prepare for the next day of daycare and work.”

She began to work part-time on the weekends, beginning in January 2014 at a privately owned Urgent Care in Wake Forest, NC. When asked about the most difficult part of her decision she says now, “It definitely required a different clinical mindset. Working in family practice, the ‘bread and butter’ of my day was managing hypertension, diabetes, and high cholesterol, with a large focus on preventive care.”

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Salus Young Alumni (continued) Ms. Parker notes that working now in Urgent Care “I have had to ‘switch gears’ and always be prepared for whatever may come through the door. Things are often not what they initially appear to be and I am constantly ruling out worst case diagnoses.

The pace of the job can be challenging at times as it is a walk-in clinic and I am a solo practitioner during the weekend.”

She adds, “I have a very supportive and knowledgeable supervising physician … who has taught me so much.

I absolutely love Urgent Care and feel that I have found my niche. My experience in family medicine was a solid foundation for my current position.” Ms. Parker hopes to stay in urgent care when she returns to full-time, which she plans to do when her children are in kindergarten.

Work/life balance is much easier now that Emily Parker works fourteen to sixteen hours each weekend. She notes, “I am able to come home to spend quality time with my family. This position has allowed me the opportunity to be actively involved at my daughter’s preschool.” She and Lily also can participate in other fun activities throughout the week. “It works well for our family for now,” she says. It should most likely work after April as well, when Emily and husband, James, a software engineer, will welcome a new sibling for Lily. As for advice to those considering a major change Ms. Parker says, “It is all about figuring out what works best for your family – if that means part-time, full-time, or staying at home!”

KHANH NGHI TRINH, OD ’10 Since her 2011 residency at the Bond-Wroten Eye Clinic in Denham Springs, Louisiana, Dr. Khanh Nghi Trinh ’10, has acquired a few more roles than that of full-time optometrist: wife, first-time home owner, president of the Central Louisiana Optometric Society and proud owner of Buddy, a Labrador/Doberman mix.

She credits her Salus PCO externships with preparing her for practice. “They allowed me to explore different optometric career options,” she notes. “I was able to experience an OD-owned private practice with an OMD-owned multidisciplinary practice and I was also able to compare a VA hospital setting with a teaching institute.” Always up for an adventure, Dr. Trinh says of her externships, “I took the chance to travel to as many places that could have been potentially called ‘home.’” Those externships ranged from Baton Rouge, Louisiana to Huntingdon Beach, California, with stops in Norfolk, Virginia and Columbia, South Carolina as well as The Eye Institute.

As a student Khanh Trinh expected her post-graduation life to be hectic, filled with long hours and working weekends that would help her pay off her student loans. The reality is “actually better than expected,” she says. Contrary to her speculation as a student, Dr. Trinh now works Monday through Friday and sees patients in the practice’s two offices. She says now, “After residency, I found a career opportunity that was beyond my

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expectations. I have been working for Dr. Lacy Shaw since August 2011 and have been rotating between his two offices.”

YOUNG ALUMNI IN ACADEMIA

Dr. Trinh also has been recognized by her profession and is actively involved in it. In 2015 she was named Louisiana Young OD of the Year by the Louisiana Optometric Association in recognition of her exemplary leadership. Additionally, she has served on the Board of the Optometry Association of Louisiana since 2013 and is the current president of the Central Louisiana Optometric Society.

She recognized early on the importance of involvement. She notes, “During my first year out (of Salus PCO), I quickly realized how legislative our profession really was. My boss was the outgoing Central Louisiana Society president… the baton was passed to me… Not that long after, I was nominated to co-chair the Student Mentoring Committee and to chair the Social Media Committee as well.”

Raman Bhakri, OD ’10, Ketchum University Southern California College of Optometry

Additionally, Dr. Trinh was actively involved in the passing of HB1065 in 2015. This increased access to eye care services for Louisiana citizens by adding a limited set of eye care procedures to the list of minor surgical procedures which trusted Doctors of Optometry already provide in the state of Louisiana. As for volunteering, she says, “Throughout the years, I have participated in vision screenings held by the Lions Club, volunteered in the Special Olympics – Opening Eyes event, and even attended the Congressional Advocacy Conference in Washington DC.” Dr. Trinh believes she will remain actively involved in her profession and volunteering throughout her career.

Her roots are firmly planted in her native Louisiana where she is an active, contributing member of the optometry community there. When asked what advice she would give young alumni she says, “Join your state association and get involved! Active involvement over the course of your career will not only benefit you, but it will better your profession.” It is easy to imagine Khanh Trinh leading the way for her colleagues, as she takes on larger roles within the profession.

THESE ARE THE STORIES of but a few of the many talented and dedicated alumni we have, be they graduates within the last ten years or those with milestone anniversaries of forty years or more. One of the many great characteristics of a Salus alumnus – no matter the profession they represent – is a desire to enhance the lives of his/her patients or clients. That commitment to people has not changed in almost one hundred years.

As part of their 50th anniversary celebration, Optometric Management magazine recognized fifty people who have made significant contributions to the profession.

The Pennsylvania College of Optometry alumni who were profiled in the magazine are a who’s who in the profession of optometry: Dr. Irving Bennett ‘44; Dr. Lou Catania ‘69; Dr. A. Norman Haffner ‘54; Dr. Thomas L. Lewis ‘70; Dr. Leo Semes ‘78, Dr. Ron Melton ‘81, and Dr. Randall Thomas ’81. As the work of Salus alumni in blindness and low vision, audiology, physician assistant, public health, occupational therapy, biomedicine and speech-language pathology gains notice and strength, we will see more Salus alumni honored for their contributions to other professions.

One has to wonder what Dr. Albert Fitch would make of this. One would hope that he would take great pride in the fact that the Pennsylvania College of Optometry he founded has expanded to admit new professions that are changing the delivery of healthcare today and optometry is helping to lead the way. One would also hope that a greater source of pride would be the PCO legacy of service and dedication to others that is evidenced by the Salus alumni of today who will become the leaders of tomorrow.

Kriti Bhagat, OD ’14, professional staff, The Eye Institute of Salus University

Rachel Brackley, OD ’09, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Michelle Britchkow, OD ’09, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Susan Calantoni, AuD ’08, assistant professor, Salus University Osborne College of Audiology Clark Chang, OD ’07, adjunct, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Deborah Ciner, MS ’12, adjunct, Salus University College of Education and Rehabilitation Alissa Coyne, OD ’10, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Bryn DeBass, OD ’07, adjunct, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Erin Draper, OD ’09, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Mary Elizabeth Garber, OD ’05, adjunct, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Bisant Labib, OD ’14, professional staff, The Eye Institute of Salus University Andy Lau, AuD ’13, faculty audiologist, Oklahoma University Medical Center Jamie Maffit, MS ’06, COMS, CLVT, assistant professor, Salus University College of Education and Rehabilitation Amanda Marchegiani, AuD ’10, adjunct, Salus University Osborne College of Audiology Zorina Mikhelson, AuD ’08, adjunct, Salus University Osborne College of Audiology Michael Rebar, OD ’10, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Ruth Shoge, OD ’06, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry J. Mark Snyder, OD ’07, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Mark Street, OD ’10, MS ’10, assistant professor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Elizabeth Tonkery, OD, MPH ’13, associate dean, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Luis Trujillo, OD ’09, instructor, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry Marshall Walker, OD ’13, assistant professor, Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry

OPTOMETRIC RESIDENTS Over the years hundreds of Salus PCO graduates have chosen to spend one or two years in residencies at The Eye Institute and other facilities across the country. The residents get an opportunity to advance their knowledge base in a particular area while serving as mentors and teachers to optometry students. Some choose to continue in academia after their residency is completed, while others go into practice.

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THANK YOU, DR. AUDREY SMITH Audrey Smith has worked for nearly four decades at PCO and Salus. Along the way she has created Blindness and Low Vision Studies (BLVS) degree and certificate programs that have broken new ground. Audrey would be the first to say that it took the work of many to achieve this. She would not be wrong; however, for those who have worked alongside her, it would be wrong not to acknowledge that Audrey has provided the “glue,” the vision, the direction, the funding and, on many occasions, the cheerleading.

In the 1970s the Pennsylvania College of Optometry added a low vision component to its West Philadelphia clinic.

Low vision specialists Audrey Smith, PhD, and Duane Geruschat, PhD, began working with clients. In 1978, the William Feinbloom Center for Low Vision Rehabilitation was established at The Eye Institute and they worked there with Feinbloom director, Dr. Randy Jose and then Feinbloom resident, Dr. Richard Brilliant.

In 1983, PCO established Graduate Studies in Blindness and Low Vision degree and certificate programs.

Audrey led the department and, along with her BLVS colleagues, was responsible for writing much of the material utilized, as there were no textbooks. Current BLVS department chair, Dr. Fabiana Perla, says, “The impact that Audrey has had in the field of blindness and low vision studies is so great, that no one can enter this profession and not know her name and her work. She has authored chapters in our main textbooks and has co-authored books that continue to guide teachers in providing quality orientation and mobility and low vision services nationally and internationally.”

Dr. Thomas L. Lewis, immediate past president of Salus, notes that in the early days the blindness and low vision programs had external funding. The College supplemented it after a time, but he credits Dr. Smith with securing grants to fund the original programs. “Audrey managed over the years to get grant after grant,” he says. “She figured out how to get it done and just did it. She also made great connections with people in Harrisburg and Washington, DC.”

Dr. Kathleen Huebner, Mr. Larry Campbell and Dr. Smith at Commencement 2010.

Dr. Anthony Di Stefano, director of Public Health programs and former vice president for Academic Affairs, adds, “Audrey’s leadership was indispensable and uniquely reflected in her ability to secure foundation, state and federal funds. Her continuous funding has been unmatched nationally; when it comes to competitive grant writing she is respected and feared by her peers.” Since 1982, the amount of grants received by PCO/Salus and written by Audrey Smith totals more than $13.5 million. The College of Education and Rehabilitation has been awarded a total of more than $40 million in grant funding under Dr. Smith’s leadership.

In 2008, Graduate Programs became the University’s College of Education and Rehabilitation (CER), now home to the Departments of Blindness and Low Vision Studies, Occupational Therapy and Speech-Language Pathology.

Professor emerita, Dr. Kathleen M. Huebner, former associate dean of the College, has known Audrey for more than fifty years and says Audrey has remained constant in her energy, loyalty, creativity, humor, and stamina. She adds, “How has Audrey changed over the last fifty years you might ask? … She has improved in every way…Today, she is more knowledgeable, caring, robust, creative, flexible, and competent.”

“Working with Audrey has never been dull,” says Dr. Fern Silverman, director of the Occupational Therapy doctoral degree program. “Audrey is truly a visionary in her ability to see what ‘is’ while imagining what ‘could be.’’’ Salus provost, Dr. Janice Scharre, notes that “Audrey is one of the most creative individuals I have known. She cares deeply about her programs, faculty and students and especially Salus.”

Dr. Smith with her son, Ryan.

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Dr. Perla says that “working with Audrey is like being caught in a whirlwind – there is always a new project, an innovative collaboration, a different way to deliver our programs, to reach more people, more states, to serve more students and clients. It is never boring!” This is confirmed by Dr. Lewis, who says that he has never seen a person more passionate about their profession. “She was so passionate about what she did that she was instrumental in taking a profession that had very little visibility and helped to raise its profile.” He also notes that Audrey and Dr. Di Stefano were a great team. “She and Tony would come into my office and tell me, ‘Tom, do we have a deal for you!’ … and Audrey would never take no for an answer.

I admire all that she has accomplished.”

Dr. Tony Di Stefano says, “For almost 40 years, Audrey and I have shared a journey which started when Audrey told me about her students at the Western Pennsylvania School for the Blind and how too often they were treated as if they were totally blind when in fact the majority had varying amounts of remaining vision.” Audrey explained that to a significant extent this was due to the inadequacies of personnel preparation programs serving the blind and visually impaired. As Dr. Di Stefano notes, “The rest is history.”

Dr. Huebner sums it up very nicely. “Audrey Smith is the College of Education and Rehabilitation. She is CER’s founder and its nurturing mother. She leaves CER offering more programs of study, degrees and certifications, a bigger and stronger CER. The College of Education and Rehabilitation will not be the same without her, but then Audrey would not want it to stay the same – she would want it to continue to grow and prosper. Audrey is an internationally recognized advocate, teacher, professor, author and administrator. She is a dynamic and energetic teacher and presenter. But most importantly to me, she is a loyal friend.”

The Salus community thanks you, Dr. Audrey Smith, for your service, dedication, commitment to your students, faculty, clients, PCO, Salus and, most of all, for your friendship. We wish you the best and know that this welldeserved sabbatical will be most successful!

Dr. Di Stefano believes that “Audrey’s deep commitment to individuals with significant visual impairment, her creativity, resourcefulness, tenacity and deep passion for the human rights of these underserved individuals” have combined to make her “a historical figure in the development of this institution.”

CER “Grant Team” of faculty and staff celebrate a 2009 grant award.

Shown (L to R) are: front row, Dr. Tony Di Stefano; Ms. Tina Fitzpatrick; Mrs. Mary Huebner.

Back row: Dr. Audrey Smith; Ms. Wendy Woodward; Ms. Lachelle Smith; Ms. Tracey Robbins; Dr. Brooke Kruemmling; Dr. Kathleen Huebner.

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ALUMNI NEWS A MESSAGE FROM ALUMNI PRESIDENT, KENNETH W. SAVITSKI, OD ’87 Many wonder “what’s the point of the Alumni Association?”

Your Alumni Association is the connector between the students, the alumni, the University and your profession. The Alumni Association helps bring valuable resources to the University to support needed classroom and clinic improvements, as well as funding for the professional endeavors of our students. The Alumni Association also provides an avenue of communication between students and alumni for internships and job placement. Hidden amongst all of these functions is much needed fundraising (such as the “I” Care Raffle), which is the mainstay of any organization.

As time has gone by and this institution has evolved, so has the Alumni Association and the role of its president. No longer does the Association represent just one or two programs; we now represent about ten! We have Board members from almost every program and we continuously strive to gain and give equal voice among the professions all of us serve. Maintaining an open door policy to all alumni and prospective students is very important and only works to make us better practitioners. During my tenure as the Association president, this has been my main goal and it will continue to be my goal as I complete my term.

As the president I have attended graduation and award ceremonies, student functions on and off-campus, and interacted with students and alumni at University functions and national conventions. I’ve penned many letters to potential students and attended funeral services for fellow graduates who have passed.

Throughout my nearly thirty years as an alumnus, I have used the services of the clinics at Salus University. I have found that this is a very rewarding experience, not just for my family and me, but also for the students. Remember our days as interns, when we wished we could see more patients? I encourage all alumni to use the services of our clinics.

I am very thankful that I have had the opportunity to serve the University and alumni during the past two years. I hope that I have made a positive difference. I look forward to continuing my fundraising efforts for the Alumni Association and the University and, most importantly, I look forward to continued meetings and conversations with my fellow alumni. Lastly, I wish that all who now walk the halls of the University, leave with as positive a feeling as I had during my academic years.

To paraphrase the words of a preceptor of mine no longer with us, “Remember every day when you walk into your workplace, you represent not only your profession and family, you also represent your University and fellow alumni.”

Thank you again for the opportunity to serve as your Alumni Association president.

Sincerely,

Kenneth W. Savitski, OD ’87

At the Alumni Association annual meeting in early April, Dr. Savitski will complete his term as president and Dennis Lyons, OD ’73 will become the new president.

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UNIVERSITY NEWS In November, Provost Janice E. Scharre, OD, announced the appointment of Brooke Kruemmling, PhD, as assistant provost. Dr. Kruemmling had been assisting the Office of the Provost in the areas of assessment, academic policy and faculty affairs, according to Dr. Scharre. “She has been a strong faculty advocate in her previous role as FOSU (Faculty of Salus University) president, which I value in Academic Affairs,” Dr. Scharre noted in her announcement.

Dr. Kruemmling, who was Brooke Smith prior to her 2015 marriage, is an associate professor in the College of Education and Rehabilitation. She will continue to teach part-time and remain director of the National Leadership Consortium in Sensory Disabilities, a multi-year grant project to support doctoral leadership programs in the fields of sensory disabilities.

On Friday, December 18, President Mittelman and members of the Salus President’s and Academic Councils visited Arcadia University, where a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two institutions was signed with Arcadia President Nicolette DeVille Christensen.

Salus and Arcadia have had a collaborative relationship since 1986, when an affiliation agreement was signed with Pennsylvania College of Optometry. An affiliation agreement allows Arcadia students to transfer to Salus PCO in their third year to begin their four-year Doctor of Optometry degree program. The University has a number of four and two-year affiliation agreements with other universities across different Salus degree programs.

The new MOU with Arcadia serves as a formal agreement between the two schools to encourage collaborative activities in education, research, and community service in fields of mutual interest. Salus has many active MOUs with institutions here and overseas that have provided student and faculty engagement across a number of educational pathways.

The ninth annual Looking Out for Kids charity fundraiser took place in November and proved to be a great success. This year’s theme was superheroes, “because every child needs a hero.” For the second year the guest co-host was NBC 10 Emmy-award winning journalist and anchor, Rosemary Connors, who warmly welcomed attendees, inviting them to “have a good time for a great cause.” The event funds eye exams and eyeglasses for uninsured and underinsured students in the Philadelphia, Norristown and Abington school districts, with plans to expand coverage to Cheltenham School District this year.

After forty-one years of service to PCO and Salus alumni, Jeanne Zearfoss, coordinator of Development Support Services, retired in December. Ms. Zearfoss (below, center, with her husband, Patrick McFeeley and Dr. Thomas L. Lewis), who began working at PCO part-time while still in high school, is well-known to the many alumni whom she knew as students. She and her husband have relocated to Florida and while she is missed, the best wishes of the Salus community – as well as their thanks for her service – go with her.

BIOMEDICINE Dr. William Monaco, associate dean, announced that Mitchell Scheiman, OD, dean of Research, will defend his PhD dissertation in April. Dr. Monaco anticipates that Dr. Scheiman will be the first faculty member to graduate from the program.

PCO WORLD Pennsylvania College of Optometry Dean Lori Grover announced the following new clinical teachers: Marc Berson, OD ’83 Clark Chang, OD ’07 Bryn DeBass, OD ’07 Chantel Garcia, OD Charles Wormington, PhD, OD, professor, has received renewed tenure. Dr. Wormington teaches across several Salus programs.

Dr. Mittelman is pictured with Arcadia president, Dr. Nicolette Deville Christensen at the signing.

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UNIVERSITY NEWS (continued) Dr. G. Richard Bennett, professor and glaucoma expert, is the Principal Investigator for the Phase 3 Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study (OHTS) funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Eye Institute is the first of twenty-eight national sites to recruit patients for this study and Dr. Bennett is the only optometrist to be named a principal investigator for this study.

INSIGHTS College of Education and Rehabilitation

Dr. Elise Ciner, professor, is co-investigator of a research study on the effects of farsightedness (amblyopia) on preschoolers’ early literacy. The study was released earlier in the year by the National Eye Institute, which is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The results of the Vision in Preschoolers – Hyperopia in Preschoolers (VIP-HIP) study, “Uncorrected farsightedness linked to literacy deficits in preschoolers” was conducted by a team of researchers with Dr. Marjean Taylor Kulp, lead author, co-investigator and distinguished professor at The Ohio State University.

Dean Smith announced the following transitions: Dr. Fern Silverman is now the director of the new Occupational Therapy post-professional doctoral program (Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD)), which will begin later this year.

Dr. Lynn Greenspan, assistant professor, was honored with an award from the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO) in appreciation of her work for NBEO over the past six years.

Dr. Greenspan has served on the Part 1-Applied Basic Science Examination Committee as well as on the Exam Council.

Dr. Erin Jenewein, assistant professor, authored an article, “Amblyopia: When to Treat; When to Refer?” published in the December 15, 2015 issue of Review of Optometry.

Dr. Bhawan Minhas, instructor, has published an article, “The Mind’s Eye: Ocular Complications of Psychotropic Medications,” in the January 15, 2016 issue of Review of Optometry.

Dean Lori Grover, Dr. Lynn Greenspan, assistant professor, and Dr. Felix M. Barker, II, professor emeritus, were honored with the American Optometric Association’s (AOA) President’s Award, given annually to individuals who tirelessly advocate for eye and vision healthcare. The honorees were presented with their awards at the AOA’s Congressional Advocacy Conference in Washington, D.C.

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Dean Audrey Smith announced the following appointments: Kyomi Gregory, PhD, CCC-SLP, assistant professor, SpeechLanguage Pathology program Brianna Brim, MSOT, instructor, Occupational Therapy program

Dr. Lauren Sponseller is now the director of the Occupational Therapy master’s degree program and chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy.

Robert Serianni, MS, CCC-SLP, has been appointed interim Speech-Language Pathology department chair and SLP program director.

Patricia Mayro, MA, CCC-SLP, has been appointed interim assistant director of the Speech-Language Institute, the clinical facility of the SLP program.

Dean Smith also announced the retirement of Dr. Carolyn Mayo, founding director of the SpeechLanguage Pathology (SLP) program in November. In her announcement to the Salus community, Dean Smith said, “Upon taking her position, Dr. Mayo indicated she would help to start the SLP program as part of career capping and her desire to give back to the field she faithfully served for many years. Though we knew our time with her would end upon the completion of this goal, we are sad to see her go, yet happy that she is now attending to her personal goals and returning home.” Dr. Mayo returned to her native North Carolina in January.

The Occupational Therapy Department and Drexel University’s Health Sciences Department have partnered to offer a sequential degree program to high-achieving undergraduate students enrolled in the Health Sciences program at Drexel University’s College of Nursing and Health Professions. The articulation agreement creates the potential opportunity for up to four select undergraduate students from Drexel University, who successfully complete all necessary requirements, to continue their education in occupational therapy studies at Salus University, beginning fall 2016.

Dr. Barbara Schwartz-Bechet, associate dean for the College has been selected as a Fulbright Scholar to work on a project in Qatar at the Shafallah Center for Persons with Disabilities. For several weeks in April she will work on a project on applied behavior analysis at the institution,

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and present a paper on inclusion at the Second Annual Shafallah Autism and Behavior Analysis Conference.

Caitlyn Foy, instructor, successfully defended her doctoral dissertation and earned her Doctor of Occupational Therapy (DOT) degree from Temple University in the fall.

Andrea Tyszka, MSOTR/L, SIPT, and Lauren Sponseller, DOT, MSOTR/L, MEd and two students presented at the New Jersey Occupational Therapy Association (NJOTA) conference in October. The presentation focused on a community-based fitness program they created for children with autism.

Kerry Lueders, MS, COMS, director of the Low Vision Rehabilitation Program, did a live broadcast teleconference training Pennsylvania Bureau of Blindness and Visual Services employees on sun lens evaluation and glare control strategies for individuals with low vision.

Approximately fifty VRT and O&M professionals in Philadelphia, Erie, Pittsburgh, Altoona, Harrisburg, and Wilkes-Barre participated in the training.

The Pennsylvania Ear Institute held an open house in March that drew prospective patients and area medical staff. Tours of the facility with demonstrations of the audiology and balance equipment were offered to attendees, who also enjoyed light refreshments.

The College signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Madras ENT Research Foundation-Institute of Speech and Hearing (MERF-ISH), Chennai, India to explore potential collaboration to offer online audiology programs and hands-on workshops.

(left to right) Provost Scharre; Dr. M. Vitek; President Mittelman; Dr. G. Sundar; Mrs. I. Kameswaran; Dean Bray; Dr. M. Kameswaran

THE AURICLE Osborne College of Audiology

THE PULSE College of Health Sciences, Physician Assistant Program

Dean Victor Bray announced the following appointments: Melissa Caine, AuD, clinical teacher Thomas Goyne, AuD, clinical teacher Amanda Marchegiani, AuD, clinical teacher

Donna Agnew, PA-C, program director, announced that affiliation agreements have been signed with the Philadelphia Prison System for student clinical experiences in women’s health, behavioral/mental health and internal medicine.

The College has completed a revised curriculum for the incoming on-campus Class of 2020, which will be implemented in August of this year.

Radhika Aravamudhan, PhD, associate professor and assistant dean for the Foundations and Assessment of Audiologic Medicine, has received renewed tenure. Dr. Aravamudhan is also a member of the University’s Inter-Professional Education committee (IPE).

Dr. Rita Chaiken, adjunct and renowned cerumen management specialist, has been installed as the president of the Academy of Doctors of Audiology (ADA).

Dr. Jenny Rajan, assistant professor, has been awarded a place in the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) leadership development program for audiologists. The one-year program for thirty participants is for ASHA members with leadership potential who are selected through a competitive application process.

Dr. Radhika Aravamudhan has been selected from a national pool of applicants as a participant in the Council of Academic Programs in Communication Sciences and Disorders (CAPCSD) Leadership Academy for 2016.

Dave Smith, MPAS, PA-C, assistant professor, co-authored an article, “Understanding percutaneous and subcutaneous central venous devices” that was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (JAAPA).

Joy Henderson, PA-C, assistant professor, and a Salus PA student joined physician assistant faculty and students from Arcadia University in Nicaragua in March on a one-week humanitarian mission. The group worked through Global Brigades, an international non-profit organization that empowers communities to meet their health and economic goals through university volunteers and local teams.

THE FRONTLINE College of Health Sciences, Public Health Programs There is an increasing number of dual degree (OD-MPH) students in the MPH degree program. A total of eight optometry students representing four US optometry schools are participants.

An additional MPH initiative is a tripartite partnership with VOSH (Volunteers in Service to Humanity) and the Brian Holden Vision Institute (BHVI) to launch the VOSH Corps program with an integrated MPH program. The first student began the MPH program this fall and will begin his VOSH Corps rotation this September in Nicaragua.

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CLASS NOTES 1950s E. Lee Adams, Sr., OD ’53 was enshrined into the George Whitfield Hall of Fame – the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame and Museum – as a member of the 44th class of inductees.

Dr. Adams, who practices in Goldsboro, NC, was recognized as one of the five Goldsboro Y members who established the Relay for Life.

1960s Errol G. Rummel, OD ’65 began national distribution of a self-developed advanced optical technology called Side Vision Awareness Glasses (SVAG). SVAG allows people with hemianopsia to perform distance viewing activities of daily life more easily and enhances driving safety by incorporating a wider viewing area with fewer aberrations.

Due to patient inquiries Dr. Rummel has recently designed a “Side Vision Awareness Glasses Reading System,” which became available for optometrists to prescribe in the first quarter of 2016.

Jerold S. Greenfield, OD ’69 has written a trilogy that includes The Eye Doctor: Dark Angel; The Rectification Committee: Dark Angel II; and The Guardian: Dark Angel III. The books follow protagonist Jared Glickman, who attends medical school in an attempt to satisfy his father’s values. To finance medical school, Jared signs his life away to a man who promises to rid him of his financial burdens.

Unknown to Jared, he actually signs up for a secret military intelligence agency and the books follow him, as his destiny changes at the hands of this intelligence agency.

1970s Stanley A. Feinblum, OD ’74 retired from Easton Eye Care on August 15, 2015, at the age of 65. After graduating from PCO, Dr. Feinblum founded his practice in Cambridge, Maryland with his wife Terri, and established the Easton branch of the practice in 1980. Dr. Feinblum and his wife are looking forward to a new chapter of their lives filled with sailing, scuba diving, and time with their grandchildren.

1980s Patricia M. Cisarik, PhD, OD ’87, FAAO was honored as the Didactic Teacher of the Year by the Southern College of Optometry Class of 2016 and the Beta Sigma Honor Society at their 2015 convocation.

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Alan Toler, OD ’88 attended the largest regional bullseye pistol match and placed second in the Master Class. Dr. Toler also shot on a two-man gun team which he sponsors. The team won each of the threegun competitions and the aggregate. At the NRA National Pistol matches, Dr. Toler placed second in the Master Class and twentyseventh overall. Additionally, Dr. Toler shot on a two-man gun team he co-sponsors. The team placed second on the first day, third on the second day, and ended third in the threegun aggregate.

John L. Burns, OD ’89 has accepted a position as an associate consultant at Dr. Gary Gerber’s Power Practice. The Power Practice specializes in consulting on all aspects of practice building. Additionally, Dr. Burns is a current clinical preceptor for Salus PCO. 1990s Lewis N. Reich, OD, MS ’90, PhD was appointed president of Southern College of Optometry (SCO) in January. Prior to his unanimous appointment by the Board of Trustees, Dr. Reich had served as the institution’s interim president from March 2015, and as executive vice president for Academic Affairs since he joined the SCO faculty in 2008.

2000s Floy W. Kampe, OD ’00 became the newest optometrist at the Hendersonville Eye Care practice in Hendersonville, NC. After graduation, Dr. Kampe practiced in Asheville for 14 years with a focus on low vision.

Dr. Kampe says that she is most interested in early detection practices in her new position.

Evy K. Bittner, OD ‘01, PhD, FAAO has achieved the distinction of Research Diplomate for the American Academy of Optometry. An honor that only seven percent of Academy Fellows achieve, research diplomate candidates are required to submit extensive written work and pass an oral examination judged by a panel of leading optometrists and vision scientists.

Dr. Bittner’s research interests include assessment of the healthy and diseased visual system – to increase understanding of the system and develop tools; and complementary and alternative approaches to sight preservation and disease/symptom attenuation in retinal degenerations.

At NSU’s College of Optometry, Dr. Bittner’s current research focuses on evaluating electro-acupuncture and transcorneal electrical stimulation as potential interventions to improve ocular/retinal blood flow and visual function in retinitis pigmentosa.

Karen A. Squier, OD ’01, FAAO joined the faculty at Southern College of Optometry as an assistant professor. Dr. Squier previously worked as an optometric consultant to the Chicago Lighthouse and at the Illinois Eye Institute. Dr. Squier is a Diplomate of the Low Vision section of the American Academy of Optometry.

Charles J. Baus, OD ’02 has been busy developing a successful photography career in addition to his day to day job as a practicing optometrist. Dr. Baus is currently able to shoot almost any major sporting event in the US. Games on Dr. Baus’s list of accomplishments include the Holiday Bowl, the Rose Bowl, and the college football championship game.

Rita R. Chaiken, AuD ’03 has been named president of the Academy of Doctors of Audiology. Additionally, Dr. Chaiken is a current adjunct faculty member at the University’s George S. Osborne College of Audiology.

Ronna Fisher, AuD ’03 was recently named the winner of the 13th Audiology Service Award, conferred by the Illinois Department of Human Services in recognition of her lifetime contributions to the profession of audiology, as well as the quality and consistency of her professional care for the hearing-impaired.

Dr. Fisher’s practice, the Hearing Health Center (HHC), is located in downtown Chicago. In 2008, Dr. Fisher founded the Fisher Foundation for Hearing Health Care for the express purpose of helping the hearingimpaired who could not afford needed professional treatment. The Foundation regularly provides hearing aids to those in need of them, and its professionals provide ongoing education to the community about hearing health and awareness.

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Lori Gray, OD ’04 received The Mercury’s “Unsung Hero” award for October 2015. The recognition is for Dr. Gray’s time spent as a volunteer at the Delaware Valley Stand Down in Levittown, PA. The Stand Down is an annual three-day event where military veterans and their families receive medical and other services, including eye exams conducted

by Dr. Gray. In addition to her extensive community and professional organization involvement, Dr. Gray is an assistant professor at Salus PCO.

Erica N. Davis, OD ’13 and her husband Dr. (Major) Jonathan Davis welcomed Joy Nicole Davis into the world in December.

Dr. Erica Davis also accepted a full-time associate position in private practice with 20/20 Vision Center in Goldsboro, NC.

Marshall A. Walker, OD ’13 joined the staff at The WahZhaZhi Health Center in Oklahoma.

Located in Pawhuska, the Center was opened in October 2015 by the Osage Nation. Shown here at the contract signing is Osage Nation Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear.

Dr. Walker is also a clinical assistant professor at NSU Oklahoma’s College of Optometry.

Amanda L. (Verprauskus) Curling, OD ’07 was married to Mitchell Curling on March 28, 2015.

Vanessa M. Santos Nevarez, OD ’09 co-authored two recent articles, “Principles and Protocols of Cataract Comanagement” for the Review of Optometry, and “Topiramate-Induced Acute Bilateral Angle Closure Glaucoma and Transient Myopia: A Teaching Case Report” for ASCO. 2010s Kimberly (Basilio) Ginsberg, AuD ’11 and her husband, Adam, welcomed new daughter, Sadie Bryce Ginsberg, in November. Sadie joins older sister, Lyla, who is three.

Steven B. Smith, AuD ’10 has joined PeaceHealth Medical Groups in Eugene, OR. PeaceHealth is a not-for-profit health care system with medical centers, critical access hospitals, medical clinics and laboratories located in Alaska, Oregon and Washington.

Dr. Smith will be working alongside the ear, nose and throat team at the PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center, University District clinic.

Ryan Reedy, OD ’12 and his wife, Stacy, welcomed son Harrison in August. Harrison joins big brothers Walter, 4, and Winston, 2.

David Y. Kong, OD ’13 has joined the primary care practice, Moorestown Eye Associates.

Dr. Kong will be working alongside practice owners Leslie Friedman, OD ’91 and Kimberly (Kester) Friedman, OD ’91 as well as, Anna E. Mellinger, OD ’11.

Sarah A. Nowling, AuD ’13, currently practicing at Pinnacle ENT, was featured in articles in The Times Herald and Main Line Media News about raising awareness of the health effects seen in patients as a result of an increasingly loud world. Focused on hearing loss seen in progressively younger individuals, and the common societal and technological culprits for this loss, the article offered advice for preservation strategies.

Martha J. Overmeyer, OD ’13 was highlighted in an article by Globe Newswire in January for her provision of care at the Newport News, VA office of N2 Eyes Comprehensive Optometry.

The practice was highlighted for utilizing the most up to date examination technology, preand post-operative care for LASIK corrective surgery patients, and their work with specialty contact lenses for those hard to fit patients. Dr. Overmeyer’s interest in pediatric optometry and comprehensive services were highlighted, explaining that the clinic works with patients of all ages and conditions to teach them how to take care of their eyes.

Rachel M. Fritz, OD ’14 married Shane A. Kishel on June 27, 2015. Dr. Fritz currently practices for The Eye Center of Central Pennsylvania in their Williamsport and Paxinos offices. Mr. Kishel teaches third grade in the Lewisburg Area School District. The couple currently resides in Lewisburg, PA. Members of the bridal party included Abby E. Crawford, OD ’14 and Chelsea M. Dunn, OD ’14.

Nathaniel J. McKay, OD ’14 has joined the Baltimore Washington Eye Center Practice, a leading eye care practice and surgery center serving the greater Baltimore and Washington DC area. Dr. McKay will work as a practicing optometrist and contact lens specialist. His uncle is Dr. James McKay ‘85.

Amanda L. Osetek, OD ’15 is engaged to Geoff Rights. The couple met during their undergraduate days at Appalachian State University. Dr. Osetek currently practices in Asheville, North Carolina, where the couple resides. Her fiancé is employed by a web development company out of Philadelphia, PA. Meredith L. (Fogg) Van Dongen, MSOT ’15 married Frederick C. Van Dongen, Jr. on September 12, 2015. The couple lives in Huron, MI. Mrs. Van Dongen is a practicing occupational therapist and her husband is employed with CertainTeed.

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In Memoriam With sorrow, the University notes the passing of: 1940s Richard N. Curtis, OD ’43 of Shrewsbury, MA passed away at the age of 93 on January 5, 2016. Dr. Curtis entered PCO at the age of 16 after graduation from high school. He established an office in Hudson, MA, where he practiced for fifty years. Involved with service to his community, Dr. Curtis also had a passion for learning and making new friends. He was often to be found sitting down for a game of cards or cribbage. Predeceased by his wife and eldest daughter, the longtime Patriots football fan is survived by his daughters Nancy and Jennifer and their spouses, his son Andrew, four granddaughters and four great-grandchildren.

Harold H. Katz, OD ’43 of Boca Raton, FL passed away on February 20, 2015 at the age of 92. Dr. Katz was the father-in-law of Roger L. Lenkin, OD ’67 and uncle of Fulton H. Katz, OD ’66.

Lila R. (Heimlich) Schwartz, OD ’43 passed away on October 28, 2015. One of Maryland’s first female optometrists, Dr. Schwartz was in practice for fifty years. She and her husband, the late Robert E. Schwartz, OD ’43, practiced in Brooklyn for a year before opening a practice in Glen Bernie, MD in 1947. Dr. Schwartz was the Maryland state chair for Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity (VOSH), and in 1988 she was honored with the Woman of Distinction Award from the Soroptimist International Club for her VOSH service. Dr. Schwartz was heavily involved with the Anne Arundel Community College, serving on the College’s Foundation Board of Directors and Board of Trustees from 1970-1990, as Chair from 1973-1976, and retiring as Trustee Emerita.

She is survived by her son, Robert E. Schwartz, OD ’71, and his three siblings, seven grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

Israel E. Press, OD ’44 of Kew Garden Hills, NY passed away at the age of 95 on September 29, 2015. Upon his graduation from PSCO Dr. Press joined the faculty as a clinical instructor. Eventually he built a private practice in Philadelphia, PA and opened a branch office in Ambler, PA. Dr. Press was active in the Philadelphia County Optometric Society as well as the American Optometric Association and the Pennsylvania Optometric Association. He is survived by his son, Leonard J. Press, OD ’77, and his grandson, Daniel J. Press, OD ’07 – a three generation PCO legacy of which Dr. Press was very proud.

Norman Foxman, OD ’48 of Longboat Key, FL and Penn Valley, PA passed away on February 22, 2016. Dr. Foxman grew up in South Philadelphia and was a proud veteran of the Army Specialized Training Program in World War II. He attended Virginia Polytechnic Institute before coming to PCO. He truly loved his career, practicing for sixtythree years and often treating several generations of Philadelphia families. Dr. Foxman is survived by his wife, Diane, sons, Scott and Brett; daughters-in-law, Ava and Nicole, and four grandchildren.

1950s Ralph J. Cericola, Sr., OD ’50 of Springfield, PA passed away on October 22, 2015. A member of the US Army 82nd Airborne in WWII, he received a bronze star for his participation in a secret night jump before the Battle of the Bulge to gather intelligence. Dr. Cericola received a second bronze star for rescuing a fellow GI and a Purple Heart after being severely wounded by shrapnel during battle. After his military service, Dr. Cericola worked at Vertol Helicopters as an engineer until his retirement in 1999. He also attended PCO on the GI bill and opened a practice in Springfield, Delaware County, PA after graduation. He remained in practice until his retirement at age 88. Dr. Cericola saw most of his patients at night or on weekends. An avid jazz music fan and Eagles football devotee, he is survived by his daughter, Cindi, and siblings Anne and Charlie.

Stanley Burgess, OD ’51 of Huntington, PA passed away on February 2, 2011. Dr. Burgess is survived by his wife.

Leonard R. Eckle, OD ’51 of Tinton Falls, NJ passed away on Sunday, August 2, 2015 at 88 years of age. During World War II, Dr. Eckle served his country in the US Navy as a pharmacist’s mate from 1945-1946. After graduation, Dr. Eckle practiced at his office in Springfield, NJ until his retirement in 2006. He is survived by his wife, Ruth Kaffke Eckle.

Remembering Dr. Gus Iatesta A. Michael “Gus” Iatesta, OD ’52 of Broomall, PA passed away on February 26, 2016. A trustee emeritus member of the University’s Board of Trustees, Dr. Iatesta joined the PCO Board of Trustees in 1980 and served as chairman from 1986 to 1988. He was someone who was passionate about his family, his profession, his patients and PCO, according to Dr. Thomas L. Lewis, immediate past president. “Gus was an amazing person,” he said. “He was so proud of how far PCO had come from when he was a student under Albert Fitch.”

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Dr. Lewis also noted that he could always count on Dr. Iatesta for support and advice.

He was the last optometrist to serve as chairman and during his tenure the PCO Graduate Programs in Blindness and Low Vision with Master of Science and a Master of Education degree programs were established.

Additionally, the College initiated its affiliation with Hahnemann University, and the Irving Bennett Business and Practice Management Center opened.

Dr. Iatesta remained an active Board member after his chairmanship ended. In 1995 he received one of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry President’s Medals

to commemorate the College’s 75th Anniversary. In 1997 the Alumni Association named him the Albert Fitch Alumnus of the Year. Always generous to the College and University, Dr. Iatesta established an endowed scholarship fund in 1986. Dr. Iatesta was also the Class of 1952’s only class representative, holding that office until his death.

Always interested in PCO and then Salus, generous with his time and advice and a true gentleman, Gus Iatesta will be missed by many in the Salus community. Dr. Iatesta is survived by his wife, Lee, daughters, Michele Stevenson and Pamela A. (Pierre) Vieyres, and five grandchildren.

THE ALUMNI MAGAZINE OF SALUS UNIVERSITY

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SPRING 2016

George Kopp, OD ’51 of Yonkers, NY passed away earlier this year. He was the cousin of the late Jules Manning, OD ’38. Dr. Kopp is survived by his wife, Eleanore.

We recently received news of the following alumni passings:

Michael L. Onorato, OD ’53 of Lansdale, PA passed away on December 17, 2015. After graduation Dr. Onorato opened his practice with offices in Lansdale and Folcroft. He worked until his retirement in 1985. A dedicated member of the Volunteer Medical Services Corps (VMSC) for over 75 years, he was honored with a life membership in the VMSC in 1978. Dr. Onorato served as VMSC commander in 1966, was president from 1967-1970, chairman of the Board in 1975, and chairman emeritus in 2013. Pre-deceased by his wife, Rita, Dr. Onorato is survived by his four children and four grandchildren.

Timothy G. Winch, OD ’71 of Appleton, WI passed away on May 25, 2006 at the age of 66. Dr. Winch practiced at Shopko Optical in Fond Du Lac for eighteen years. He led a life full of musical composition, worship, and ginko trees, surrounded by a warm and loving family.

Dr. Winch is survived by his wife Christina, his three children Tanya, Sam, and Adam, two grandsons, and other family members.

Sidney S. Fink, OD ’56 passed away on January 1, 2015. Dr. Fink is survived by his daughter Lisa Savitt. Dr. Fink was a cousin of the late J. Leonard Cahan, OD ’48.

1970s

1990s Karen M. Derrick ’95 of Washington, PA passed away on July 16, 2011.

Ms. Derrick, was an orientation and mobility instructor and teacher of the visually impaired for more than thirty years. She is survived by her daughter, Jennifer; her companion, Gerald; her former husband, James; a sister and other family members.

Charles C. Reiss, OD ’59 of Cherry Hill, NJ passed away on January 12, 2016 at the age of 85. Dr. Reiss was a deacon in the Roman Catholic diocese of Camden. He is survived by his three children, five grandchildren, one great-granddaughter, his brother George, his sister Carolyn, and many nieces and nephews.

1960s John F. Robinson, OD ’68 of Blowing Rock, NC passed away on May 14, 2015 at 73 years of age. Following his graduation, Dr. Robinson enlisted in the US Army Medical Service Corps and served at Fort McClellan Noble Army Hospital in Anniston, Alabama for two years. Dr. Robinson opened an optometric practice in Boone, NC, where he worked in family practice for eighteen years. He practiced for an additional twenty-two years after moving to Plymouth, NC. Dr. Robinson is survived by his wife, Toni, their three sons, four grandchildren, and his sister.

Missing Alumni Fred Halperin, OD Edwin A. Sweeney, OD Herbert M. Blank, OD Alfred Keglovitz, OD John J. Reddy, Jr., OD Mark H. Sanders, OD Harris Mandelstein, OD Robert G. Nupuf, OD Fredric D. Ressler, OD Jerome B. Wildman, OD John A. Dudash, OD Robert G. Smith, OD Butler Jean-Louis, OD John R. Latch, OD Leslie R. MacLaren, OD Patricia A. Nepps, OD Richard L. Raucci, OD

1952 1952 1957 1957 1957 1957 1967 1967 1967 1967 1972 1972 1977 1977 1977 1982 1982

John B. Van Ginhoven, OD 1982 Allan L. Wilkofsky, OD 1982 Robert L. Kesead, OD 1987 Baruch M. M. Levavi, OD 1987 Gerald L. Ross, OD 1987 Mary Beth D. Brady, MEd 1992 Lisa A. Shearman, MS 1992 Ms. Sandra Daro 1997 James L. Fong, Jr., MS 1997 Susan I. Friedman, MS 1997 Kelly L. Joedicke, OD 1997 Alyssa F. Kimmel, MEd 1997 Ambreen Rashid Shakeel, OD 1997 Ms. Michelle Saunders 1997 Michele L. Schock, OD 1997 John J. Sheehan, OD 1997 Monique M. Turnbull, OD 1997

Sandy Yee, OD Anh-Thu V. Bui, OD Michelle M. Hoang, OD Ngoc Thu K. Nguyen, OD Gwyn S. Russo, MS Madeleine Cissna, AuD Gina L. Cooper, AuD Kelly M. Long, AuD Ms. Varnelle A. Moore Anita Narang, OD Jennifer A. Niertit, OD Jodi M. Oliveri, AuD Ayaka Sato, OD Nicole M. Collins, OD Jigna D. Patel, OD Jaclyn Phan, OD

1997 2002 2002 2002 2002 2007 2007 2007 2007 2007 2007 2007 2007 2012 2012 2012

We have no contact information for the alumni listed here. If you can provide information about a classmate, please contact Jamie Lemisch at 215.780.1391 or jlemisch@salus.edu.

19

THANK YOU, DR. BILL MONACO On June 30, William Monaco, OD, PhD, FAAO, will retire as associate dean for Graduate Programs in Biomedicine and associate director for Public Health programs. He first came to PCO in 1986 as an adjunct at the request of Dr. Anthony F. Di Stefano, who was then assistant dean of Academic Development.

A US Navy clinical optometrist at the time, Dr. Monaco would take personal leave to come to the Oak Lane campus periodically from Portsmouth, Virginia, teaching for a week and staying in the “PCO hotel” – a dorm that had seen much better days by 1986. In addition, he taught for many years in the PCO international Master of Clinical Optometry (MSCO) degree program.

In 1992, as dean of Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry (NSUOCO), Dr. Monaco was responsible for the creation of the College’s Rural Eye program, a collaboration with the Cherokee Nation that established eye care in four outlying tribal health clinics to help combat the high incidence of diabetes found amongst Native Americans. Bill Monaco says it was this public health project that brought home to him that the key to effective public health is sustainability.

Dr. Di Stefano expands on that commitment to public health and adds, “One of the key enduring values and life experiences that has shaped Bill’s public health world view has been his many years of being the only optometrist in Delaware who provided vision and eye care to thousands of nursing home patients in the State.”

In 2008, Dr. Monaco served as a special assistant for program development to then vice president of Academic Affairs, Dr. Di Stefano, who says, “One of his most significant accomplishments was building the programmatic and technology infrastructure of the University’s Master of Public Health (MPH) program.”

Building the program involved recruiting faculty, rolemodeling online education strategies for students and faculty, and developing strategic partnerships with optometric professional organizations around the world, according to Dr. Di Stefano. Dr. Monaco also created unique MPH scholarship programs with the African Council of Optometry (AFCO) and the Armed Forces Optometric Society (AFOS). “Over the past eight years he has been the backbone of the program, playing a unique leadership role in the MPH program development and growth,” says Dr. Di Stefano.

strength in program development, distance learning, and graduate education. “Bill stepped in and has nurtured the continuing development of graduate research training,” he notes. “Facing the many challenges of a new program, Bill’s dedication and perseverance has brought the program through a crucial phase of its development,” he adds.

After June 30, Bill Monaco will continue teaching public health courses and mentoring PhD students. He feels he still has the “fire in the belly” and the motivation. “I feel as though I am still at the top of my game,” he says. After thirty-five years of teaching, his pride in his students still runs strong. It is a testament to his modesty that it would never occur to him that their accomplishments are in large part due to his teaching and mentoring. Bill Monaco has never sought the limelight and has always put the needs of his programs, students and faculty first.

When pinned down to answer how he feels about what he has accomplished all these years, he does speak of “transitional reliability” – the creation of something that carries across borders, cultures, age groups and countries.

He emphasizes the point that training his MPH and PhD students is paramount so that they in turn can bring change to their worlds and, if pressed, Bill concedes that he had something to do with it.

Dr. Monaco enthuses about a recent Public Health class of thirty students composed of dual-degree optometry students, senior optometrists and military personnel spread over seven countries. He grins when he speaks of how his far-flung students “talk to one another about the courses and transfer information,” – again never seeming to realize it’s the teacher who inspires enthusiasm among the students.

His friend and colleague, Dr. Tony Di Stefano says, “Bill has devoted himself to the continued growth of both the MPH and PhD programs. He has developed innovative interdepartmental courses across both ... Bill leaves a legacy of professionalism, dedication to his students, innovation in program design and distance learning, and an enduring love for the aging population.”

Thank you, Bill, for your many years of dedication and commitment – to your country, your patients, your students and faculty, and to Salus and PCO. With your love of teaching, you have brought so much to so many – and your friends and colleagues wish you continued success!

After Dr. Pierette Dayhaw-Barker retired in 2014 as founding dean of Graduate Programs in Biomedicine, Dr. Monaco became associate dean of that program. Dr. Di Stefano recounts that Bill Monaco was there to move the University’s first PhD program forward and credits his administrative 20

THE ALUMNI MAGAZINE OF SALUS UNIVERSITY

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SPRING 2016

CLASS BENCH DEDICATION Dedicate a campus bench in honor of your special reunion anniversary.

Classes ending in a ‘1 or ‘6, who are up for the challenge should rally their classmates to make anniversary gifts to the University. Get 50% or more of your classmates to participate and the University will dedicate a bench in honor of your class (class gift total must be a minimum of $2,500). Gifts must be received by June 30, 2016 to count.

How to participate Make your gift online at salus.edu/donate or complete and return the form below.

Contact Jamie Lemisch at 215.780.1391 or jlemisch@salus.edu to organize your class campaign.

Salus University 8360 Old York Rd Elkins Park, PA 19027 Phone 215.780.1391 Fax 215.780.1396 alumni@salus.edu www.salus.edu

What Kind of bench?

The benches are made of dense and durable dark wood that we expect to last 25 years or more. A durable zinc plaque with a brushed bronze finish will be installed providing space for your class dedication.

Please photocopy and return this section to the address listed on the left.

I/We wish to make a gift of $

Name

Method of payment: Check payable to Salus University

Class Year

MasterCard

Address (Home or Business – circle one)

Credit Card #

Phone (Home, Business, or Cell – circle one)

Signature

Visa

V-Code

Exp.

salus.edu

THE FUTURE OF HEALTH SCIENCE SINCE 1919.

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P A I D PHILADELPHIA, PA PERMIT NO. 773

8360 Old York Road Elkins Park, PA 19027-1598 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Calendar O F

EVENTS

APRIL 13-16, 2016

JULY 20-24, 2016

AudiologyNOW! American Academy of Audiology Annual Convention Phoenix, AZ

AER International Conference 2016 Jacksonville, FL

APRIL 14-17, 2016

International Vision Expo and Conference West 2016 Las Vegas, NV

International Vision Expo and Conference East 2016 New York, NY APRIL 27-29, 2016

2016 Penn-Del AER Conference Harrisburg, PA MAY 14-18, 2016

American Academy of Physician Assistants Annual Conference San Antonio, TX MAY 23-27, 2016

Acoustical Society of America Spring Meeting Salt Lake City, UT MAY 26, 2016

Spring Commencement Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA JUNE 29-JULY 3, 2016

American Optometric Association: Optometry’s Meeting Boston, MA JULY 10, 2016

Retinal Disease Symposium Salus University, Elkins Park, PA JULY 16-19 & JULY 21-24, 2016

Audiology Summer Workshop Series Salus University, Elkins Park, PA

SEPTEMBER 14-17, 2016

OCTOBER 6, 2016

Fall Commencement Reformed Congregation Keneseth Israel, Elkins Park, PA OCTOBER 14, 2016

Pennsylvania Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference Lancaster, PA OCTOBER 19-22, 2016

Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants Fall CME Conference Pittsburgh, PA OCTOBER 29, 2016

Looking Out For Kids Hafter Student Community Center, Elkins Park, PA NOVEMBER 6-7, 2016

Optometric Education: Sponsored by Luxottica Salus University, Elkins Park, PA NOVEMBER 9-12, 2016

American Academy of Optometry Anaheim, CA NOVEMBER 17-19, 2016

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Convention Philadelphia, PA