ASCO News
Contact:
Kimberly O’Sullivan
Director, Communications
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry
(301) 231-5944 ext. 3019
kosullivan@opted.org
Pixel Optics Joins ASCO’s Corporate Contributor Program
ROCKVILLE, MD, February 14, 2012 — The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is pleased to announce the addition of PixelOptics, Inc. to its Corporate Contributor Program. ASCO’s Corporate Contributor Program supports national programs and activities benefiting the schools and colleges of optometry. The program provides opportunities for representatives from both the corporate and educational institutions to discuss matters of mutual interest. In addition to the Corporate Contributor Program, PixelOptics is also participating in ASCO’s Clinic Directors and Ophthalmic Optics Special Interest Groups.
Richard Clompus, OD, FAAO, Vice President, Global Professional Affairs & Marketing for PixelOptics states, “we are excited to become a supporter of ASCO. A core focus of our company is to educate eye care professionals on the benefits of electronic interactive corrective eyewear for the correction of presbyopia. This makes our association with ASCO a perfect fit for our organization.”
Headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia, PixelOptics is committed to “transformational innovation” in the spectacle lens industry. The company’s flagship product, emPower!®, is now available in all major U.S. markets. The world’s first electronic corrective eyeglasses, emPower!® features a thin transparent liquid crystal layer within a composite lens, microchips, micro-accelerometers and miniature rechargeable batteries.
PixelOptics’ focus is on improving and elevating the current standard of vision correction by inventing, developing and marketing a wide range of innovative new products based on dynamic focusing lenses, innovative lens design technologies and composite optics. For additional information on Pixel please visit: www.pixeloptics.com. For additional information on emPower! electronic focusing eyeglasses please visit www.empowereyewear.com.
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The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, represents the 21 professional doctor of optometry degree programs in the United States and Puerto Rico. Affiliate membership is available for foreign schools of optometry and for related optometric organizations. There are currently 29 companies supporting ASCO’s Corporate Contributors Program. For more information, please visit ASCO’s website at www.opted.org.
Contact:
Kimberly O’Sullivan
Director of Communications
301.231.5944 ext.3019
kosullivan@opted.org
Number of Applicants Applying for Residencies Jump Nearly 20% in First Year of ASCO-Managed Optometry Residency Match Program
ROCKVILLE, MD, February 26, 2013 – Students of optometry are positioning themselves to significantly advance their preparation as a doctor of optometry, as indicated by the nearly 20% increase of applicants to the Optometry Residency Match, or ORMatch. ORMatch was established by ASCO less than one-year ago. It matches the student and the residency program based on a mutual ranking algorithm.
“The additional year of training is a unique and rewarding experience and upon completion of their residency, our graduates will have advantages as they begin their careers. For example, the Veterans Health Administration considers a residency as a prerequisite for employment,” according to the President of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry, David A. Heath O.D., Ed.M. “The growing interest in residency education is a plus for the profession and we believe it will result in an ongoing expansion of residency programs,” President Heath added.
“We are pleased to note a large increase in applications this year,” says Dr. Doug Hoffman, Director of Residencies at the New England College of Optometry and Chair of ORMatch. “There has been increasing interest in residency programs in recent years. Residency trained optometrists are well equipped to thrive in today’s evolving health care environment and to play a role in the advancement of the profession.”
In total, 574 optometric students applied for 381 residency positions. The matching will begin March 11.
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The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is a non-profit association representing the interests of optometric education. Founded in 1941 and headquartered in Rockville, Md., ASCO is committed to achieving excellence in optometric education and to helping its member institutions prepare well-qualified graduates for entrance into the profession of optometry. Its membership encompasses the schools and colleges of optometry in the United States and Puerto Rico. A number of optometry schools outside the United States are affiliate members.
Contact:
Kimberly O’Sullivan
Director, Communications
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry
(301) 231-5944 ext. 3019
kosullivan@opted.org
Optometrist Ranks Near the Top
of CNNMoney’s List of Best Jobs in America
ROCKVILLE, MD, Nov. 12, 2012 — CNNMoney has ranked optometrist No. 12 on its recently released “100 Best Jobs in America” list. Highlighting what makes the job “great,” the list includes “Good pay without the frequent long hours and middle-of-the-night emergency calls doctors expect” and “Patients typically aren’t in pain or afraid, so visits tend to be low-key, and many stay with the same optometrist for years.” The researchers responsible for the list cite the median pay for an experienced optometrist as $105,000 and top pay as $149,000. They predict 33.1% job growth during years 2010-2020.
To compile the list, CNNMoney and compensation experts PayScale.com began with more than 9,000 job titles and identified those that require at least a bachelor’s degree. They focused on professions that offer favorable growth opportunities based on Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts. They considered a variety of other information, including data from a PayScale.com survey of more than 120,000 workers who ranked their jobs on quality-of-life factors such as stress, flexibility, satisfaction and how they feel their job affects the world. The full “100 Best Jobs in America” report can be found at http://money.cnn.com/pf/best-jobs/2012/snapshots/12.html.
This is not the first time optometry has been lauded as a desirable career choice. For example, it appeared on the CNNMoney list in 2010, was among Kiplinger’s 13 Best Careers in 2010, and was rated “excellent” in a 2007 U.S. News and World Report guide to careers.
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The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is a non-profit association representing the interests of optometric education. Founded in 1941 and headquartered in Rockville, Md., ASCO is committed to achieving excellence in optometric education and to helping its member institutions prepare well-qualified graduates for entrance into the profession of optometry. Its membership encompasses the schools and colleges of optometry in the United States and Puerto Rico. A number of optometry schools outside the United States are affiliate members.
Contact:
Kimberly O’Sullivan
Director, Communications
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry
(301) 231-5944 ext. 3019
kosullivan@opted.org
ASCO’s ORMatch Now Open for Applicants
ROCKVILLE, MD, Oct. 1, 2012 – The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is pleased to announce that ORMatch launched today. ORMatch is the new Optometry Residency Match, which is administered by National Matching Services Inc. (NMS). An ASCO committee with representation from ASCO and the Department of Veteran Affairs oversees the program with management support from ASCO.
Starting today, applicants can register for ORMatch and begin sending applications to participating programs using the online system accessible at the ORMatch web site at http://www.natmatch.com/ormatch.
Applicants should register for the match by Dec. 31, 2012.
Visit the ORMatch web site for more information, such as an overview of the service, a list of participating programs, a detailed schedule of important dates and a description of the matching algorithm.
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The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is a non-profit association representing the interests of optometric education. Founded in 1941 and headquartered in Rockville, Md., ASCO is committed to achieving excellence in optometric education and to helping its member institutions prepare well-qualified graduates for entrance into the profession of optometry. Its membership encompasses the schools and colleges of optometry in the United States and Puerto Rico. A number of optometry schools outside the United States are affiliate members.
Contact:
Kimberly O’Sullivan
Director, Communications
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry
(301) 231-5944 ext. 3019
kosullivan@opted.org
ASCO Establishes New Optometry Residency Match (ORMatch)
ROCKVILLE, MD, April 24, 2012 – The Board of Directors of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is pleased to announce it has establishedORMatch, the new Optometry Residency Match. ORMatch replaces the Optometry Residency Matching Service (ORMS), which was administered for over 30 years by Dr. Charles Haine. “ASCO commends Dr. Haine for decades of exemplary service and dedication in administering ORMS. We are excited that ASCO will now have the opportunity to work directly with the residency community, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the profession in designing and administering a Residency Match that will further promote the development of residency education in our profession”, stated Kevin Alexander, O.D., Ph.D., ASCO President.
ASCO has entered into an agreement with the National Matching Services, Inc. (NMS) for the design and administration of ORMatch. Founded in 1985, after developing sophisticated matching algorithms and software for the placement of physicians into residencies in the United States, NMS administers matching programs for many professions in the U.S. including pharmacy, psychology, dentistry, and osteopathic medicine. It works closely with most universities that train health care professionals in the U.S., as well as hundreds of VA programs, hospitals, training sites, and thousands of applicants across the country every year. “We are confident thatORMatch will function in the best interest of all optometric stakeholders and we look forward to administering this valuable service for you,” stated Jonah Peranson, Vice President, National Matching Services, Inc.
ORMatch will be a new Match program and will operate within the ASCO structure. NMS will design and administer the program with policy guidance and oversight by the new ASCO ORMatch Committee comprised of three ASCO representatives, three Department of Veterans Affairs representatives, and a Chair. Paige Pence, ASCO Director of Student Affairs, will be the project director and will work with the ORMatch Committee and NMS.
The design phase of ORMatch will run from May-August, 2012. The launch will be no later than October 1, 2012 with the Match occurring in early March. A specific timetable will be developed by the ORMatch Committee.
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The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is a non-profit association representing the interests of optometric education. Founded in 1941 and headquartered in Rockville, Md., ASCO is committed to achieving excellence in optometric education and to helping its member institutions prepare well-qualified graduates for entrance into the profession of optometry. Its membership encompasses the schools and colleges of optometry in the United States and Puerto Rico. A number of optometry schools outside the United States are affiliate members.
Contact:
Kimberly O’Sullivan
Director, Communications
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry
(301) 231-5944 ext. 3019
kosullivan@opted.org
ASCO Updates Guidance on Competencies Expected
of Students Graduating from Optometry Degree Programs
The 2011 “Attributes Report” is designed to serve as a national resource for U.S. schools and colleges
Rockville, Md. (Nov. 4, 2011) – The Board of Directors of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) has accepted a new “Attributes of Students Graduating from Schools and Colleges of Optometry” report. The updated “Attributes Report” is a series of competency statements that broadly define the attributes expected of students graduating from any one of the schools or colleges of optometry in the United States. The attributes are classified into three areas: 1) professional values and ethics, 2) knowledge, and 3) skill.
“The revised report will be an invaluable resource for the optometric profession as a whole and the state associations in that it is a cogent and contemporary presentation of the attributes today’s graduates possess upon entering practice,” ASCO President Kevin Alexander, OD, PhD, said.
This 2011 report updates an initial report jointly developed by the optometric community and accepted by the ASCO Board of Directors on June 20, 2000.* It represents current thinking about the requisite competencies for new graduates of optometry programs and recognizes how educational program management is changing in all healthcare disciplines. As explained in the report, current educational program management is evolving with improved descriptions of desired educational outcomes, enhanced mechanisms for assessing attainment of those outcomes, and expanding strategies that provide for ongoing scrutiny of individual and programmatic results while making appropriate adjustments to the outcomes and the techniques used to teach and develop them.
According to Jennifer L. Smythe, OD, MS, ASCO Secretary-Treasurer and a member of the Attributes Report Task Force along with Kent M. Daum, OD, PhD, “The Attributes Report serves as a valuable tool for developing and revising optometric curricular outcomes and for educating the public on the full scope of optometrists’ knowledge base, skills, professional and personal attributes and competencies. The new document reflects contemporary optometric practice and includes interprofessional competencies.”
The entire Attributes Report is contained in the Fall 2011 issue of ASCO’s journal, Optometric Education [https://optometriceducation.org/files/journal/OE_FALL_2011.pdf]. It will also be posted on the association’s Web site.
* Heath D, Daum K, DiStefano A, Haine C, Schwartz S. Attributes of students graduating from schools and colleges of optometry. Optom Educ. 2000 Fall;26(1):15-18.
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About ASCO
The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is a non-profit association representing the interests of optometric education. Founded in 1941 and headquartered in Rockville, Md., ASCO is committed to achieving excellence in optometric education and to helping its member institutions prepare well-qualified graduates for entrance into the profession of optometry. Its membership encompasses the schools and colleges of optometry in the United States and Puerto Rico. A number of optometry schools outside the United States are affiliate members.
For its members and the optometric community, ASCO produces two online publications, the newsletter Eye on Education and the peer-reviewed journal Optometric Education. For information about advertising in these publications or the Association’s Corporate Contributors Program, contact Christine Armstrong, Director, Development, at (301) 231-5944 ext. 3018 or carmstrong@opted.org.
Contact: Paige Pence
404.545.6159
ASCO Announces 2011 Envision Video Competition Winners
Rockville, MD (June 29, 2011) – The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2011 Envision Video Competition. This year, awards were given to first, second and third place. The recipients are:
- Neal Guymon (SCCO) – First Place ($5,000). Neal’s video can be seen at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpmwJMbPIvc. - Paul Neville (SCCO) – Second Place ($2,500). Paul’s video can be seen at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u788bGDILjw. - Katie Gettinger (UMSL) – Third Place ($1,000). Katie’s video can been at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gsRHcaRB78.
The Envision Video Competition is part of ASCO’s career marketing efforts. The competition was judged by members of the Student Affairs Committee on how effectively the videos educated potential applicants and the general public about the profession of optometry, in addition to its creativity, ingenuity, and humor.
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The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, represents the 21 Schools and Colleges of Optometry in the United States.
Contact:
Kimberly O’Sullivan
Director, Communications
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry
(301) 231-5944 ext. 3019
kosullivan@opted.org
Importance of Protective Eyewear During Sports
Rockville, MD (April 5, 2011) – Each year in the United States, there are approximately 600,000 documented sports-related eye injuries. Of these, roughly 72% occur in individuals younger than 25 years, and 43% in those younger than 15 years.
April 4-10 has been designated National Public Health Week by the American Public Health Association (APHA). This year’s theme is “Safety is NO Accident: Live Injury-Free.” In support of this important awareness week, the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) encourages all individuals, and particularly children, to wear proper eye protection when participating in sports.
“With extremely high rates of sports related eye injuries, it is important to recognize that these instances are highly preventable. By wearing protective eye gear, athletes of all ages can significantly reduce their chance of injury and promote better safety practices” – Earl L. Smith O.D., Ph.D., President, ASCO
Further, ASCO stands with the APHA in its call for public health measures to positively impact this growing concern. Among those efforts detailed in the APHA’s policy statement – “Promoting the Use of Protective Eyewear for Children in Sports” – are recommendations to enact state legislation across the country that would require eye protection for children playing sports; to encourage health educators and facilitators of sports programs to teach the value of quality fitted sports protective eyewear; to conduct studies on the cost-effectiveness of sports protective eyewear; and the employment of risk management strategies by insurance companies promoting the use of protective eyewear.
“Upwards of 90 percent of sports eye injuries can be prevented through the proper use of protective eyewear,” said Renée Mika, OD, Chair of the Vision Care Section at APHA. “Injuries can range from temporary to permanent vision loss. This is indeed a public health concern that must be addressed.”
The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, represents the 20 Schools and Colleges of Optometry in the United States.
Contact:
Marty Wall
Executive Director
301 231-5944 Ext. 3016
ASCO SIGNS AGREEMENT CREATING AMERICAN BOARD OF OPTOMETRY
ROCKVILLE, MD, September 1, 2009 – A Memorandum of Understanding to establish the American Board of Optometry (ABO) has been signed by the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) president, Dr. Mel Shipp. ASCO joins the American Academy of Optometry (AAO), the American Optometric Association (AOA), and the American Optometric Student Association (AOSA) in establishing the new board certification body. The ABO is the entity that will develop and implement the framework for board certification and maintenance of certification.
Commenting on signing the historic agreement, President Shipp said that “ASCO is pleased to partner with other organizations to ensure the delivery of high quality patient care services by optometrists. As a member of ABO, ASCO will be better able to ensure that the optometric education provided by its member institutions is consistent with this objective.”
David A. Heath O.D., Ed.M., President, State University of New York, State College of Optometry, was appointed by Dr. Shipp as ASCO’s representative to the American Board of Optometry (ABO). In announcing the appointment, Shipp commented, Dr. Heath brings broad experience as a dean and president of two optometric institutions as well as extensive ASCO and other not-for-profit leadership experience. In addition to his academic administration experience, Dr. Heath’s analytical ability, keen intellect and extensive operational and governance experience will be invaluable to the ABO.”
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The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, represents the 20 professional doctor of optometry degree programs in the United States and Puerto Rico. Affiliate membership is available for foreign schools of optometry and for related optometric organizations. A growing number of ophthalmic companies participate in ASCO’s Corporate Contributors Program.
