As Southern College of Optometry welcomes alumni, friends and family to campus for our Fall Homecoming and CE weekend, this special edition of SCOnline highlights some of the most interesting facts about our new academic complex. The generosity of our alumni and friends allowed this milestone to be reached, so this update is designed to give you a first look, particularly for those alumni or friends unable to join us later this week. Look for additional updates via SCO's Facebook page and more coverage in our Fall Annual Report edition of SCO's VISIONS magazine as we chronicle this exciting chapter in SCO's history.

SCO's new classrooms are one of the central interest points inside the college's newest academic facility. Replacing the old East/West classroom configuration, our new North/South classrooms feature spacious, modernized seating designed to accommodate students and their laptops or tablet devices as they take notes. Call-in microphones allow students to push a button and ask a question amplified so everyone in class may hear. Every lecture is recorded so students may log in later via an online program called Tegrity to watch all or part of a class session. Videos are also synchronized with images or slide presentations seen in class. Seminar rooms at the back of the classrooms may be opened to accommodate full campus-wide gatherings of all students, faculty and staff for the first time. The new configuration has earned high praise from students and faculty who have already used the facility, and CE attendees will be the first ODs to hear lectures in the new classrooms on Friday and Saturday during CE weekend.

Leading to SCO's new classrooms is a "grand hall," designed to incorporate the functional touches that enhance learning opportunities in every space. Three alcoves are recessed off the hallway around the entrances to the new classrooms. These spaces provide comfortable study nooks already popular with students. Overlooking the old driveway that led to SCO's back parking lot are full plate glass windows. Located at the central entrance to SCO's new classrooms, an ornate terrazzo seal symbolizes the college's name and logo for a stylistic branding touch. The touch adds a point of pride for all who pass on their way into the lecture halls or break-out rooms.

SCO's new atrium is massive in scope. Constructed at ground level on the site of the old patio, the area features a portion of the tower's back wall on one side, mirrored by another wall housing SCO's new classrooms on the other. Tables, chairs and benches add study space to the area, separated by a glass-ensconced grand stairwell leading down to the first floor. High ceilings expose steel beams and pipework, painted to add color in a style inspired by the famed Centre Georges Pompidou Museum in Paris. The space is perfect for hosting alumni gatherings, student events or other community gatherings. A mural symbolizing a student's journey through optometry school is being installed this week, along with artwork throughout the facility selected in a partnership with the Memphis College of Art.

SCO's new pre-clinical labs incorporate the latest technology, including computers stations, in an impressive new configuration that replaced the old labs in the tower. Situated on the back of the first  floor, the labs are located near faculty offices for instructors who teach first- and second-year  courses, along with new student study areas and lockers. The two lab rooms may be combined into one space. The lanes ascend in a stacked tier perfectly situated for students to look down at a centrally located instructor. Likewise, the space invites instructors to move freely about the lanes to confer with students. This past weekend, SCO's Board of Trustees voted to match up to $200,000 in new alumni gifts to name the labs in honor of one the college's most beloved and long-time faculty members, Jim Newman, OD '73. If you would like to be among the first of our alumni to honor Dr. Newman with a gift to show your gratitude for his 40 years of teaching, you may give via this online form or email alumni@SCO to inquire about the best way to make your pledge.

Your meaningful gift will support critically needed patient care or student scholarships. Use the "Give a Gift" button to make a gift online, or  contact the  Office of Institutional Advancement for other ways to support SCO. Your gift is important and appreciated!

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