OPT Visionary - Summer 2014

PAGE 2 is a special year because it marks the 50 th anniversary of Nova Southeastern University and the 25 th anniversary of the College of Optometry, which will be commemorating this significant milestone with a major event on September 13. As I reminisce about my NSU ar- rival in 1997, I recall there were two computers in the col- lege—and you never knew if the Internet was functioning or if emails would arrive at their proper destination. Retinal cameras used film—a lot of film—and the slides had to be sorted by a resident and put in sleeves to be filed somewhere you hoped could be retrieved if re- quested. The current incarnation of The Eye Care Insti- tute did not exist, but we did have three clinical sites, including Opa Locka, while the North Miami Beach loca- tion was in need of repair and had more leaks in the roof than we had baskets to catch the water. We are now in our 18 th year since relocating from North Miami Beach to the Davie campus. The Eye Care Insti- tute now has five clinic locations—Broward Boulevard, Broward Lighthouse, Davie, Kids in Distress, and North Miami Beach—which provide our student clinicians with outstanding opportunities to experience an extremely di- verse patient population. All our clinics are now con- nected through electronic health records, meaning they can be easily retrieved at any location. One of the most significant changes is the quality of our faculty members, students, and graduates. The for- mer young faculty members are now mid-career with years of teaching experience. Additionally, many of these faculty members are recognized experts throughout the world, and their clinical research is being externally funded and presented at national meetings. As times have changed, the faculty members and ad- ministrators have embraced technology. Similarly, enter- ing students are required to have an iPad since class notes, lab exercises, ebooks, and videos have been de- veloped by a number of our faculty members and exams can be administered through Exam Soft on the iPad. Through social media, we are able to rapidly post pictures of events and offerings at the college as well as keep in contact with alumni and candidates for admission. The college continues to maintain its high standards for admissions and recruit the best and the brightest students for our entering class. This is definitely evidenced by the OATs and GPAs for the entering classes and our pass rate with the NBEO and licensure examinations over the last few years. At the American Academy of Optometry this year, many alumni visited our booth to express thanks for their education and gratefulness for all the experi- ences they had while attending NSUCO. Many of our alumni are now in leadership roles throughout the country in their local and state associa- tions, including the FOA where 1994 alumnus Barry J. Frauens, O.D., FAAO, associate professor, will be the incoming president this year. I believe that even with this progress, we must continue to remain dili- gent to stay ahead, strive for excellence, and strongly promote the college, the optometric profession, and NSU. We hope to see you on September 13 so you can help us cele- brate NSUCO’s 25 th anniversary. By David S. Loshin, O.D., Ph.D., FAAO ean’s Message “I BELIEVE THAT EVEN WITH THIS PROGRESS , WE MUST CONTINUE TO REMAIN DILIGENT TO STAY AHEAD , STRIVE FOR EXCELLENCE , AND STRONGLY PROMOTE THE COLLEGE , THE OPTOMETRIC PROFESSION , AND NSU.”