Southern College of Optometry Student Organizations 2013

Southern College of Optometry Student Organizations: SCO’s student leaders have put together a great overview of the benefits of getting involved in student organizations. Check out this Flipbook with letters from each club president.

American Optometric Student Association 243 N. Lindbergh Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63141 (314) 983-4231 FAX: (314) 991-4101

Welcome to Memphis, Class of 2017: On behalf of the entire student body and the American Optometric Student Association (AOSA), congratulations on your acceptance to Southern College of Optometry! You are entering a wonderful profession, and while the next four years may have its challenges, your SCO community is here to support you every step of the way.

As the SCO Trustee to the AOSA Board of Trustees, my goal is to promote the mission of the AOSA: “To improve the visual welfare and health of the public, to promote the profession of optometry, and to enhance the education and welfare of optometry students.” I am your voice to the national AOSA organization, which gives you, along with over 6,000 other optometry students at all 23 schools and colleges of optometry, representation to a multitude of allied optometric organizations. You will learn more about what the AOSA does for students at the national level during Orientation.

Most importantly, every SCO student is automatically an AOSA member! There are many benefits to your AOSA membership, such as receiving complimentary membership to the American Optometric Association (AOA), the Contact Lens & Cornea Section, and the Sports Vision Section. You will receive free subscriptions to several optometric journals like Optometry, the journal of the American Optometric Association, and Foresight, the official magazine of the AOSA written for optometry student by optometry students. You receive access to health insurance plans, career guidance, and web-resources. Additionally, each class has a slightly different benefits package; as a first-year student you will receive a(n): · Optometric clipboard · Lens Cloth · USB Flash Drive · AOSA T-shirt, and · many more giveaways throughout the year!

The SCO AOSA hosts several events and receptions on campus to help expose students to the many facets of optometry from industry to legislation. The best part is, there is always free food or giveaways provided at these events…as the AOSA sees it, you commit a lot of time as optometry students, why not be rewarded for your hardwork! The AOSA, along with the Student Government Association, also secure travel grants and scholarships for SCO students to attend the various yearly optometry conferences from Congressional Advocacy Conference in Washington D.C. to Vision Expo West in Las Vegas, NV. As a heads-up, the 2014 Optometry's Meeting™ will be held in Philadelphia, PA. This conference is the joint national meeting for the AOA and the AOSA, with educational courses, receptions, exhibits, and social activities.

The highlight for the AOSA program is the annual Varilux Optometry Student Bowl, a Jeopardy-style quiz bowl filled with optometry-related questions. Each school sends one representative with the hopes of walking away from the competition with a crystal trophy, $1,000, and bragging rights for the upcoming academic year. I will tell you more about the wonderful experience the national conference and membership in the AOSA has provided me during Orientation- it’s hard to put into words all these great experiences!

Among AOSA’s many other events planned for the year, be sure to mark your calendars for our annual student tradeshow, Optifest 2013, on Thursday, September 26th from 5 - 8 pm in the Activities Center. Optifest will give you the opportunity to network with our industry partners. You will be able to talk with frame vendors (and even make frame purchases!), contact lens companies, pharmaceutical reps, ophthalmic equipment companies, and much more. This year, Optifest has received an exclusive sponsorship from the International Vision Expo. You can expect great food, booming industry collaborations, and plenty of student prizes to be won at Optifest 2013!

Page two AOSA

Lastly, be on the look out for weekly emails from the AOSA detailing all the student events and benefits available to you throughout the upcoming year. If you have a Facebook account, be sure to stay up-to-date with AOSA by ‘liking’ our SCO AOSA group page.

If you have any questions for me about anything (AOSA, SCO, Memphis life, my experiences in organized optometry, etc), feel free to email me at apuerto@student.sco.edu…I’d love to hear from you! You may also find more information about the AOSA and your benefits at www.theaosa.org.

Get excited Class of 2017…the best is yet to come!

Carpe Diem,

Amy A. Puerto AOSA Trustee Class President ‘15

Welcome to the Southern College of Optometry!

We are honored and excited you have chosen to join the SCO family.

You will quickly learn that there are many different ways to practice Optometry. The College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD) helps distinguish optometry from other professions.

COVD’s passion is to enhance patients’ lives utilizing vision therapy. Vision therapy (VT) targets techniques needed for a patient to correctly focus their eyes, use them simultaneously, move them together accurately, or help their brain correctly process visual stimuli.

There is much more to vision than seeing 20/20 as some visual conditions cannot be corrected with glasses or contact lenses; this is when VT can help. The patient base for this field includes students struggling in school, patients who have experienced traumatic brain injury or stroke, patients with physical and mental disabilities, athletes who want to improve their game, or simply any patient who would benefit from an improvement in the function of their visual system. The impact of vision therapy can make a real difference in the lives of your patients. If you are interested in making this type of difference in your patient’s lives, I encourage you to join COVD. As the student organization of COVD, our goal is to share the enthusiasm about vision therapy. Monthly COVD meetings provide a great opportunity for you to ask questions, meet doctors from around the country, get to know fellow students and see if vision therapy is a possible practice option for you. We also recognize the importance of community involvement and we do volunteer projects in the Memphis community.

As a member of COVD, you will have access to the most up-to-date information about visual development and how to integrate vision therapy into your practice. You will have the opportunity to meet some of the most influential optometrists in the field. Also, membership is completely Free!

If you have any questions, please check out COVD’s website (www.COVD.org) for more information, or feel free to email me. I hope to see you at our first meeting this fall. Watch your email for an invitation.

Congratulations and Best of Luck!

Lindsay Durtschi and Kari Maffitt COVD Co-Presidents 2013-2014 Class of 2015 ldurtschi@student.sco.edu kmaffitt@student.sco.edu

Volunteering at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital

Practicing VT Actvities

We can't wait to meet everyone!

Fellowship of Christian Optometrists Congratulations and welcome to Southern College of Optometry! Beginning the education that will help you become the best optometrist you can be represents a significant step towards a bright future. during this time you will inevitably experience many challenges, and its important to have a good support system to help you through. As Christians, we know each other’s core values and can support each other in a unique way.

FCO is a non-denominational, international organization dedicated to furthering the gospel of Jesus Christ. We meet on a regular basis for food and fellowship opportunities and a summer mission trip out of the country. Just a few months ago we traveled to Caledonia, Belize, performing roughly 500 eye exams and giving out nearly as many Bibles. We will have a monthly Bible study often served with home-cooked meal. In addition to these events we regularly serve breakfast to the homeless downtown.

We hope that you consider this wonderful organization. Feel free to ask me or anyone on the leadership team questions. For more information about our plans this year, check us out at the student organization fair during the Big Sib Pizza Dinner, Tuesday September 3rd.

Sincerely,

Elena Lopez SCO Class of 2015 2013-2014 FCO President

2013-2014 Leadership Team President: Elena Lopez elopez@student.sco.edu President Elect: Courtney Melchione cmelchione@student.sco.edu Treasurer: Inna Timshina itimshina@student.sco.edu Secretary: Jamie Taylor jamietaylor@student.sco.edu Historian: Stephen Bollinger sbollinger@student.sco.edu Mission Trip Coordinator: Brittany Brinkley bbrinkley@student.sco.edu Bible Study Coordinator: Jill Greene jgreene@student.sco.edu

Class of 2017,

On behalf of the members of Gold Key International Honor Society, welcome to the Southern College of Optometry…you are about to embark on one of the most exciting chapters of your life! We congratulate you on coming this far, it is an incredible accomplishment and you should be very proud.

It is my sincere wish that your four years of doctorate training are filled with professional and personal growth. I know that 4 years will fly by and you will soon find yourselves blossoming into clinicians of great knowledge and skill. But during your studies, don’t forget that it is also important to thrive as an individual, enriched with a compassionate character and a helping heart.

The mission of Gold Key International Optometry Honor Society is to recognize optometry students who demonstrate outstanding leadership to their college and profession. Membership to Gold Key is limited to 10% of a graduating class and the American Optometric Student Association (AOSA) considers Gold Key membership “the highest honor for leadership a student of optometry can achieve.”

Rising fourth year students are chosen for membership by their peers based on contributions they have made to the profession and the school. Although Gold Key membership may feel far away into the future, the evaluation for candidacy is happening every day as you interact with other members of your class and of the SCO community.

Our school is filled with an incredible number of extracurricular organizations that would undoubtedly benefit from your active involvement and leadership experience. The meetings, projects, and trips will impact your perspective and might even change your life. It is this experience, outside the classroom, that you will vividly remember when, in May of 2017, your journey draws to a close.

So as you begin this great, 4 year adventure, don’t forget that it’s not all about grades. Don’t forget to have fun and to enjoy your time in Memphis!

Best of luck in your academic and extracurricular pursuits!

Sincerely,

Stephanie Lew International and Chapter President Gold Key Honor Society Class of 2014 | slew@student.sco.edu

Southern College of Optometry

INTRAMURAL SPORTS 2013 - 2014 FALL

SPRING

Flag Football Volleyball Softball

Basketball Volleyball Soccer Golf Scramble

Aerobics: Will be offered all year long.

Details will be posted at a later date.

Check the 4th floor bulletin board for all upcoming or on going intramural events. Contact the IM co-chairs for any questions, comments, or concerns.

Jacob Muller | jmuller@student.sco.edu Kyle Anderson | kyleanderson@student.sco.edu

LDS OPTOMETRY ASSOCIATION SOUTHERN COLLEGE OF OPTOMETRY

Welcome Class of 2017!

Volume 2, issue 1 Summer 2013 Important Dates to Remember August 29-30: New Student Orientation September 3 Registration Classes Begin

Pictured above is the Class of 2016 at the Annual Convocation and White Coat Ceremony

October 4 Convocation/White Coat Ceremony

Congratulations on your acceptance into Southern College of Optometry! What an accomplishment in your life.

Now that the acceptance is behind you, it is time to find a place to live, if you have not already done so. This can be a daunting task, especially because you are all coming to Memphis from long distances including Utah, Idaho, California, Colorado, and South Carolina. But you don’t have to worry because you have a great connection with the other LDS students here at the SCO. Many of you have spouses, some with children, and some single.

Whatever your situation, we know you will fit in and we are here to help not only you, but your spouses and children as well.

Current SCO LDS students live in Southaven, Cordova, or even some in Memphis.

The LDSOA was organized last year due to the large number of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints attending SCO, in order to bridge the gap from prospective optometry students all the way to alumni. While the association was created primarily to address the needs of LDS members in optometry here at SCO, we welcome students and doctors of all faiths to join us in accomplishing our goals.

Questions you may have that we would be more than happy to answer: • •

• • •

Congratulations again and we look forward to meeting you soon!

Please feel free to contact me personally with any questions you may have.

•

Steven Blake LDSOA, President 2013-2014 sblake@student.sco.edu

•

Where will I or my family live?

What are good family activities near Memphis or where I live?

Where are places to shop near me?

What ward will I attend?

Where is the LDS temple and what is the fastest way to get there from where I live?

What are good schools or daycare for my children to attend?

Who are the other LDS students in my class or other classes?

Southern College of Optometry

Lions Club “We Serve” To the Class of 2017, Welcome to the Southern College of Optometry! On behalf of the Lions Club of Memphis at the Southern College of Optometry, I would like to personally congratulate you on your acceptance and welcome you to Memphis, TN. Upon entering SCO, you will be presented with many opportunities to get involved and help the surrounding community through volunteer work. I encourage you to take advantage of these opportunities to improve your optometric skills and to provide a much needed service to the community.

The Lions Club is an international organization primarily dedicated to the preservation of sight and has been actively involved in service to the blind and visually impaired since 1917. Since you have chosen a career in service to people with an emphasis on vision, I feel you will be interested in joining SCO Lions Club. Founded at SCO in February of 2004, the SCO Lions Club has participated in various vision screenings and fundraising events throughout the year. Not only are we members serving the greater Memphis area, but we are also members of a worldwide organization, one of more than 46,000 clubs serving 193 countries and geographical areas. The Lions Club is expanding their focus to help meet the ever-increasing needs of our global community. As Lions, we are continually changing our programs to meet new needs and greater demands, but our mission has never wavered, “WE SERVE!” I would like to welcome you to the great profession of optometry and I look forward to meeting you. I know that you have a lot to offer the Lions Club so I encourage you to take advantage of what it can offer you. I invite you to attend our first meeting of the year, which will be announced after classes have begun. I look forward to welcoming you to our club and working with you to pursue our goals of helping the blind and visually impaired. Feel free to contact me at jgreene@student.sco.edu if you have any questions or would like further information.

Sincerely,

Jill A. Greene SCO Lions Club President Class of 2015

Welcome Class of 2017!

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the SCO family on behalf of the National Optometric Student Association (NOSA).

NOSA’s mission is to promote awareness of social and cultural differences in order to enhance doctor-patient and doctor-doctor relationships. We are also dedicated to increasing minority representation in optometry, but you Do Not have to be a minority to join. With these goals in mind, we host several events throughout the year including vision screenings with local organizations, outreach events for high school and college students, guest speakers, and social gatherings for NOSA members to learn from and grow with each other.

It is our responsibility as members of the healthcare community to be aware and effective in the delivery of vision care to all of our patients regardless of their background. NOSA gives you the opportunity to play an active role in fostering diverse relationships that will help prepare you to be a great clinician.

We support active participation and open communication to help develop our growing organization and its members. We encourage ALL students to commit to being active leaders in their communities and promote openness to diversity.

Congratulations on your acceptance to SCO and we look forward to meeting you this fall!

Sincerely,

Brittany Tounsel NOSA President btounsel@student.sco.edu

2013-2014 Officers President Brittany Tounsel Vice-president Nathan Osterman Treasurer Tram Pham Secretary Kirsten McKnight Historian Virgilio Gozum Fundraising Chair Haley Nguyen Visit our booth at the student organization fair on Tuesday, September 3rd Also, visit our website at www.sco.edu/nosa

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November

STATE CLUBS 2013-2014

JOIN STATE CLUBS! WHAT ARE STATE CLUBS? State Clubs are collection of students who are interested in practicing in a particular state WHY SHOULD I JOIN?  For speakers and visitors from various states  For placement services when you’re ready to look for a job  To learn what it takes to practice in different states  For possible mentoring opportunities WHAT STATES HAVE CLUBS? SCO has a club for all 50 states! Some clubs are more active than others, so feel free to join several! You do not have to be from that state to join!

HOW MUCH OF MY PRECIOUS STUDY TIME WILL STATE CLUBS TAKE UP? State Club involvement varies depending on the club. Some clubs have semester dinners and speakers, while some are simply a way to stay in contact with state optometric associations. There is no minimum participation, so join as many as you would like!

HOW DO I JOIN? Sign up at the Orientation Fair! A few clubs have dues, but most are FREE to join!

Any other questions, contact State Club Co-Liaison John Moonan and Kevin Hart at jmoonan@student.sco.edu and khart@student.sco.edu.