A Short Conversation with Dr. Fraser Horn, ASCO President

 

During ASCO’s Annual Business meeting in June, ASCO swears in a new President for the upcoming 12 months. This year, Dr. Fraser Horn was sworn in as ASCO’s President.

 

Dr. Horn is the Dean of the College of Optometry at Pacific College of Optometry. He also has taught in the Sports and Recreational Vision, Ocular Disease I, Applied Ocular Therapeutics, Biomedical Ethics and Ocular Emergencies courses. 

 

Dr. Horn chatted with ASCO’s Communications intern, Jannah Said, about the upcoming year.

Deadline to submit essays is February 18, 2025

The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry is thrilled to report its U.S. institutions had the highest number ever of applicants during the 2023-2024 OptomCAS application cycle.

Madison Broderick joined ASCO’s team in late May 2022 as an intern and is excited to announce her full-time position as the Program Associate for Member Engagement. Madison graduated from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree in Nonprofit Management and a minor in Public Administration in May.

After more than a decade, Desiree Ifft, ASCO’s long-time managing editor of ASCO’s online Journal, Optometric Education (OE) decided to seek other employment opportunities.

 

After an extensive search, ASCO welcomes Rebecca Dobrinski as OE’s managing editor.

The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) announces Eye Opener Sessions, a complement to ASCO’s public awareness campaign, Optometry Gives Me Life.

Deadline to submit nominations is January 22, 2025.

 

The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry is now accepting nominations for the various achievement awards that will be presented at the ASCO Annual Business Meeting in June 2025.  

ASCO’s Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice Committee (IPRF) announces that ASCO’s IPECP Toolkit, A Guide to Effective Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice Experiences in Optometric Education, has been updated and is available as an open-access document at https://optometriceducation.org/news-resources/ipe-toolkit/.

The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry offers a Career Center resource, hosted by Boxwood.

Jannah Said is a pre-optometry student who is excited to join ASCO as the new Communications intern. She is a rising senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (go Tar Heels!), where she is pursuing her Bachelor of Science in Quantitative Biology and will be graduating this upcoming May.

Eric Chan joined ASCO’s team in mid July 2024. Eric is a third year student at the University of Maryland – College Park. He is currently double majoring in finance and operation management and business analytics. Eric entered ASCO as a general intern who will be assisting in multiple projects amongst various departments.

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Bausch + Lomb Reports More Than 76 Million Units of Contact Lenses, Lens Care, and Eye Care Materials Collected Through ONE By ONE and Biotrue® Eye Care Recycling Programs

Celebrating 75 Years

 

Reflecting its steadfast commitment to continuous innovation, CooperVision now offers clariti® 1 day multifocal 3 Add contact lenses in the U.S. Several of the company’s advanced technologies are combined in the new lens to provide all-day comfort, ease of fit, and the widest range to meet the needs of more patients.^*2,3

EssilorLuxottica Eye Care Continues Tuition Sponsorship Program for Optometry Students in Partnership with ASCO and Stride Funding

 

Haag-Streit launched its new Imaging Module 910 3D (IM 910 3D), which features a dynamic 3D live-stream, at the American Optometric Association meeting in Nashville in June. The enhanced module comes equipped with a second 4K camera that allows doctors to experience an immersive depth impression, unveiling higher detail, and enabling a richer viewing experience. 

Ready to Help your Students Become ACUVUE® Multifocal EXPERTS?

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Dr. Fraser Horn, ASCO President and Dean of the Pacific University College of Optometry, will step down from his role as Dean in July 2025 and take a two-year leave from the university as he works to expand the profession globally.

The specialty lenses are used to slow the progression of myopia, or nearsightedness.

 

Practitioners across nearly every discipline are eager to see how AI might impact — or even help improve — their work. But one field that is following the emerging technology particularly closely is the world of health care.

After a nationwide search, Northeastern State University (NSU) has selected Dr. Nathan Lighthizer as the Dean for the Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry (NSUOCO).

After a successful international search, Sharon A. Bentley has been selected to serve as the new Dean of the Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry & Vision Science. Professor Bentley is currently professor of optometry, deputy dean of the Faculty of Health and director of the Centre for Vision and Eye Research at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane, Australia. She will join the UC Berkeley community on February 3, 2025.

Jeffrey L. Weaver, OD ‘85, MBA, MS, FAAO, FACHE, has been appointed interim dean of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO), effective October 1, 2024. Salus University provost Dr. Gerry O’Sullivan made this announcement. 

Chicago College of Optometry student Roman Somogy (CCO ’25) shed light on eye safety just prior to the view of the solar eclipse. During his interview with WGN Radio 720 on April 3, 2024, Roman shared the knowledge he acquired from his Midwestern University education and provided information on best practices as the public prepared to see the eclipse.

With Southern College of Optometry experiencing 98% totality for the April 8 eclipse, the college worked in advance to promote safe eclipse viewing. Eclipse glasses were provided for students, employees, and patients on the day of the event.

Community Eye Care (CEC), the UAB School of Optometry’s community outreach arm, celebrated 50 years of providing vision screenings and comprehensive eyecare to underserved communities while training future optometrists to provide compassionate care. To date, the program has cared for approximately 25,000 patients.

About a dozen Midwestern University students from the Arizona College of Optometry (AZCOPT) and members of the University chapter of Student Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity (SVOSH) assisted close to 185 refugees from Afghanistan, Latin America, Ukraine, and several parts of Africa with their eye care last fall.

A new beginning. 

That’s what Michael H. Mittelman, OD ‘80, MPH, MBA, FAAO, FACHE, president of Salus at Drexel University, called the ceremony held on Aug. 20, 2024, where the Drexel University flag was hoisted for the first time above the Salus University flag on the flagpoles in front of the pond on the Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, campus. 

ASCO President Fraser Horn announced his selection of two faculty members to serve as ASCO observers to the NBEO Examination Councils Meetings being held October 25 – 27, 2024, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Dr. Suresh Viswanathan, professor and chair of the Department of Biological and Vision Science and interim associate dean for optometric education at the SUNY College of Optometry, has been named Dean of the Indiana University School of Optometry, effective June 3, 2024.

Krupa Patel, OD, Assistant Professor, at the Arizona College of Optometry, Midwestern University (MWU), explains the importance of taking care of children’s eyes and how parents can ensure the safety of their children’s vision.

Optometrists and optometry students must understand how diversity influences care and affects outcomes to achieve everyone's optimum vision and eye health. Patients and healthcare providers are more likely today to encounter a wide cross-cultural array of clinically relevant needs, attitudes, customs, values, beliefs, and fears that decode experiences.