TheAOSAatSCOhostsmultipleeventseachyear forourstudentmembers.Theseevents include Optifest, State Day, Student Bowl, and World Sight Day.Wealso promoteand supportnationalconferenceslikeOptometry’sMeetinginMinneapolisthisyearandAOA onCapitol HillinWashingtonD.C.Weprovidethousandsofdollars’worthof travelgrants tohelpsendyoutothemostimportantmeetingsoftheyearsothatyouhaveevery opportunitypossibletolearnandgrow.
ThemostexcitingpartaboutAOSAatSCOisthat you are all members! Youare automaticallyenrolledasamemberbecausethecollegepaysyourduesforyou. So,you alreadyhaveaccesstoalloftheincrediblebenefitsthatAOSAhastooffer! I’msoexcitedfor youtogettoexperienceallofthewonderfulaspectsoftheAOSA, hereatSCO, and ona nationallevel.
Congratulations to the Class of 2028! On behalf of our school’s chapter of Beta Sigma Kappa, welcome to the Southern College of Optometry!
Beta Sigma Kappa was founded in 1925 by a small group of optometrists in Illinois. BSK now has student chapters in every school and college of optometry in the United States, with two in Canada and one in Puerto Rico. Membership in BSK is by way of invitation to students who have earned a GPA of 3.5 or higher at the culmination of each academic year. Additionally, membership in BSK is an honor for life.
BSK supports and works with student chapters to develop programs that foster academic excellence. Our mission is to stimulate scientific attainment - the ethical practice of optometry - and to provide financial support for worthy research projects relating to vision care and the eyes. The SCO chapter of BSK organizes mock practicals for 1st and 2nd year students to help them prepare for future practicals and experience in clinic! In addition, BSK is involved in planning blood drives, maintaining study guide resources for students, and voting on annual Teacher of the Year awards.
Good luck to the beginning of an amazing four years, and I look forward to seeing each of you in just a few short weeks!
Best,
Divya Mistry, President Class of 2026
Dear Class of 2028,
On behalf of Gold Key Optometric Honor Society, welcome to Southern College of Optometry! You are about to embark on a very exciting chapter, and we congratulate you on this step forward in your academic professional career. It is my sincere hope that these next four years are filled with experiences that contribute to your personal and professional growth.
The mission of Gold Key is to recognize optometry students who demonstrate outstanding leadership in their college and profession. Membership to Gold Key is limited to 10% of the graduating class. The American Optometric Association recognizes Gold Key membership as “the highest honor for leadership a student of optometry can achieve”.
Rising fourth years are chosen for membership by their peers based on contributions they have made to the profession, their peers, and the school. Although the honor of Gold Key membership may feel far into the future, the evaluation for candidacy is happening every day as you interact with other members of your class, and within the SCO and Memphis communities.
Our institution offers a wide array of extracurricular organizations which will undoubtedly benefit from your active involvement. I encourage you to get involved in organizations and activities that spark your passions. The meetings, projects, and trips will impact your perspective and may even change your life. It is these experiences outside the classroom that you will vividly remember in May 2027 when you walk across the commencement stage and are welcomed as a Doctor of Optometry! I wish you the best of luck in your academic, professional, and personal pursuits. Please feel free to reach out with any questions regarding Gold Key. Welcome to SCO!
Sincerely,
JoAnndria Brown, Class of 2025
Gold Key International Optometric Honor Society President jobrown@sco.edu
INTRAMURALS
Welcome Class of 2028! Do you love sports but don’t know how to get involved? Join us at SCO in playing Intramural Sports!
• We offer several sports that you can get involved in!
• Depending on interest, we may also have Indoor Soccer, Dodgeball and a Kickball Tournament! We try to have sports going on year-round.
• All sports are FREE to students and spouses if they wish to play.
Prior exposure to the sport is not required and all skill levels are welcome!
We will notify when sign-ups are starting! If you have any questions, feel free to email me, Noah Eichelberger at neichelberger@sco.edu
Our Goals:
Raise awareness about low vision services
Connect with resources in the community
Expand and improve the services we offer patients
Dear Class of 2028,
Welcome to SCO and congratulations on choosing optometry as your future career! We hope you will consider joining us in Low Vision Club.
The demand for low vision optometrists is increasing as the population lives longer. Some of your future patients will have permanently reduced vision that cannot be corrected with glasses, contact lenses, or surgery. While vision loss can be devastating, it is NOT a dead-end for a patient's life.
It is in every optometry student's best interest to be familiar with low vision solutions and community resources to help patients make the most of their remaining vision.
Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions!
Sincerely,
Helen Zhong, Class of 2026
hzhong@sco.edu
Low Vision Club President
Past Meeting Topics:
Adaptive sports
Intro to low vision devices
Paint night with low vision simulation goggles
Contact lenses in low vision
Accessibility
marketing
Partnering with Lion's Club for Leader Dogs for the Blind
Partnering with Lion's Club for
Dining in the Dark
NORA: Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation Association
Welcome Class of 2028!
Congratulations and welcome to SCO, we look forward to meeting you all!
Visual problems are often overlooked during initial treatment of a brain injury and a regular eye exam often does not reveal the extent that the visual process has been affected. Individuals who have experienced some sort of neurological insult or injury, and who are experiencing visual symptoms, can benefit from a vision assessment from a NeuroOptometric Rehabilitation Optometrist, an eye care professional who specializes in the diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of neurological conditions adversely affecting the visual system.
2024-25 Officers:
President: Gretchen Curtis ‘26
Vice President: Ashlynn Mexisell ‘27
Secretary: Audrey Selle ‘26
Treasurer: Emily Gibson ‘26
NORA at SCO is part of a national organization focused on assisting people who have experienced neurological damage. One distinguishing aspect of this organization is that it is interdisciplinary, involving optometrists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and other healthcare professionals that collaborate to rehabilitate patients in need.
NORA international is devoted to:
Increasing public and professional awareness and understanding of the need for Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation services, as well as to encourage an interdisciplinary team approach to care for patients suffering from acquired and traumatic brain injuries.
Reach out to Gretchen Curtis at gcurtis@sco.edu if you have any questions!
NATIONAL OPTOMETRIC STUDENT ASSOCIATION
Welcome Class of 2028!
The National Optometric Student Association (NOSA) is an international service organization of optometry students dedicated to increasing access to eyecare for minority and under-served communities.
2024-2025 Officers
President: Lauren Jackson
Vice President: Zach Fulton
Secretary: Kennedy Corey
Treasurer: Karen Kaleli
DOI Liaison: Jerbrea Powell
To be added to the email list and be notified of upcoming events, email Kennedy Corey at kcorey@sco.edu
Past Events
Black Optometrist Perspectives
Black History Month Presentation
Vision Screenings @ Black Men’s
Health Walk
Medical Spanish Speaking Class
SCO’s Got Talent Show
OVER 200 MEMBERS COME TOGETHER EVERY YEAR AT VARIOUS EVENTS INCLUDING OUR ANNUAL FLOAT TRIP , JERSEY PARTY , HALLOWEEN PARTY , EYEBALL AFTER PARTY , AND MANY MORE!
WE WORK WITH LOCAL BARS AND RESTAURANTS TO ENSURE YOU HAVE TIME TO RELAX AND ENJOY MEMPHIS AMONGST ALL THE HARD WORK OF OPTOMETRY SCHOOL.
AFTER ALL , IT CAN'T BE ALL WORK AND NO PLAY!
JOIN US IN THIS YEARS FUN!
Welcome Class of 2028!
On behalf of the Private Practice Club, congratulations and welcome to SCO! We are so excited for you all to experience what this school has to offer.
Private practice optometry continues to show the greatest potential for earnings and satisfaction in our profession. OPP Club offers countless resources, a community of like-minded people, and great networking and leadership opportunities Whether you want to learn more about private practice, or begin preparing to start your own, OPP Club is the perfect place to do it. We host monthly meetings featuring speakers and private practice owners to discuss relevant topics and learn from their experiences in owning a practice.
We hope to see you there!
The 2024-2025 OPP Executive Board
President: Sarah Sumida
President Elect: Aine Mendonca
Treasurer: Warren Jackson
Secretary: Carson Pemberton
Social Media Chair: Thea Spencer
WHATISRAM?
Remote Area Medical (RAM) is a major nonprofit provider of free, mobile medical clinics. Volunteers provide medical care to underserved, isolated communities. Most clinics provide medical, dental, vision, and preventative care.
SCO students have the opportunity to provide vision services to hundreds of patients during a RAM trip. We typically spend a weekend in a rural area of Tennessee to provide services such as refraction, slit lamp examination, and dilated fundus exams! All patients also receive free glasses made on-site.
RAM opportunities are emailed out to the student body and students will be chosen to attend. All students, including first years, and faculty are welcome to participate! We look forward to seeing you on our next trip!
NEXT TRIP: MEMPHIS | OCTOBER 19-20
STATE CLUBS AOSA
Welcome to SCO! We are glad you're joining us this fall. With many of you moving to a new city or a new state, we know it can be a big transition. Your life in Memphis over the next four years will be full of challenges and fun times. We want to make sure that you feel connected while here at SCO, whether that be to your home state, or even looking to a new place you may want to practice at in the future! One of the best ways to make those connections is by joining a State Club. There are around 15 active State Clubs here at SCO, full of members looking to learn more about how optometry functions in that specific state. We can't wait to see how you'll get involved here at SCO! Be sure to stop by our booth during the student org fair to sign up for a State Club. Dear Class of 2028,
Benefits of Joining a State Club
Connect with students from your home state or the state where you want to work
Network with doctors who know what it is like to practice in a certain state
Find mentors to guide you through your optometric career
STUDENT VOLUNTEERS
IN OPTOMETRIC SERVICE TO
HUMANITY
WHAT WE DO: SPEND THE YEAR COLLECTING GLASSES AND FUNDRAISING TO PREPARE FOR TRIPS TO MEXICO, CENTRAL, AND SOUTH AMERICA TO PROVIDE COMPREHENSIVE EYE CARE TO THOSE WITH LIMITED ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE!
WHY YOU SHOULD JOIN: FURTHER YOUR OPTOMETRIC SKILLS, GAIN THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN ABOUT DIFFERENT CULTURES, CONNECT WITH PEERS AND CURRENT DOCTORS, HAVE A REWARDING AND MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE SERVING OTHERS!
2024 TRIP STATISTICS:
O PATIENTS: 737
O SPECTACLES: 580
O SUNGLASSES: 426
O PATHOLOGY: 349
O REFERRALS: 83
Come see us at the organization fair! COUNTRIES WE’VE TRAVELED TO:
O BELIZE
o BOLIVIA
o COLUMBIA
o COSTA RICA
o ECUADOR
o EL SALVADOR
o MEXICO
o AND MORE!
Vision Therapy Club
Welcome to SCO, Class of 2028!!!
It’s time to get excited about Vision Therapy! And there’s no better way than by joining the Vision Therapy Club!
For many of you, Vision Therapy (VT) is a new term. VT focuses on retraining the brain to use the eyes more efficiently to improve visual comfort and reduce stress on the visual system VT is commonly prescribed to treat binocular vision disorders, strabismus, amblyopia, double vision, strokes, and TBIs. The direct and personal impact you can make in a patient’s life with Vision Therapy is incredibly rewarding. And as a bonus, VT is fun! If you want to learn more about VT, check out OVDRA, OEPF, and NORA.
The Vision Therapy Club seeks to bring VT to life outside the classroom and show you what VT is like outside SCO This year we have many incredible optometrists and vision therapists lined up to share their stories and experiences with you! Along with meetings, we host the VT Olympics, distribute Boo Pops for Halloween, and sell Peds Packs in the spring. We also have some exciting raffles at our meetings, so stay tuned!
Reach out anytime with any questions about VT or the VT Club!
