Doug Boyd
Alisha Cheng
Kristen Lantz, O.D., KYCO ’20
Trevor Peden
The American Society of Optometric Surgeons: KYCO students achieve Student Fellowship status In 2018, a faculty-student collaborative initiative quickly advanced into an absolute first in the nation, The American Society of Optometric Surgeons (ASOS) student chapter.
and hoped to elevate the knowledge and experiences of KYCO students to be the best optometric surgeons possible.
University of Pikeville-Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) Assistant Dean of Clinical Affairs and Associate Professor of Optometry Cliff Caudill O.D., FAOO, Director of Research and Associate Professor of Optometry Georgios Asimellis, Ph.D., and KYCO Class of 2021 student Logan Ritchhart discussed an objective for a student organization that placed significant focus on providing optometry students with additional interactive learning experiences, networking and advocacy opportunities.
In the letter granting the charter to KYCO as the first student chapter of ASOS, Founding President Richard E. Castillo, O.D., D.O., stated, “We look forward to future collaboration and to the contribution which the growth and development of KYCO’s chapter will have on not only helping the ASOS realize its mission, but also its impact on optometry at the local, regional and national levels.”
The colleagues realized that the goals they had for the student organization matched those of a collaborative group of practitioners and educators committed to the advancement of knowledge in optometric surgery, ASOS,
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UPIKE MAGAZINE | FALL/WINTER 2020
After petitioning ASOS for the formation of a student chapter, the group received its official welcome letter.
Founding Member and Treasurer of ASOS, Caudill is proud of the dedication and professionalism the student leaders of ASOS have shown at KYCO and the national chapter. “The students at KYCO took the initiative to start a student chapter of the American Society of Optometric
