OCTOBER 2015 
Fall Commencement 2015
The University held its fall commencement on Tuesday, October 6. The weather was picture perfect as the graduates and faculty processed from the Salus campus across the street to Congregation Keneseth Israel in Elkins Park, where family and friends waited. President Michael H. Mittelman welcomed the graduates and their guests. Keynote speaker was Thomas E. Beeman, PhD, FASCHE, Rear Admiral, USNR, chief operating officer for University of Pennsylvania Health Systems Regional Operations. Read more.
 
(Pictured above: Dr. Kenneth Savitski '87, Salus  University Alumni Association president, presents Physician Assistant graduate Anthony Firetta with the Alumni Association Award). 
Dr. Thomas L Lewis Honored
Salus University president emeritus, Thomas L. Lewis, OD, PhD, FAAO, has been named a "Pioneer in Optometry" by Primary Care Optometry News in their October 7 issue. In  April, Dr. Lewis received the James A. Boucher Award from the National Academy of Practice in Optometry (NAPO). 
      Throughout his long and storied career, first as an educator and then as an administrator, Dr. Lewis has received countless accolades for his contributions to the profession of optometry and to education. He was also one of a number of PCO alumni named to Optometric Management's list of "Most Influential" in honor of the magazine's 50th anniversary (see article below, right column, "PCO Alumni Named...").  
SOSH 2015 Humanitarian Trip: Haiti
SOSH (Students in Optometric Service to Humanity) members have been fundraising and volunteering since the organization - now nationwide - was founded by then PCO third-year student Algernon Phillips, OD '69. This year's student volunteers and their preceptors, Dr. Luis Trujillo '09 and Dr. Vitto Mena '14. 
    Student volunteers - who saw 1,362 patients in four days - were: Class of 2017 members Aleah Altman; Katya Bej; Rachel Bentzel; Marie Boas; Ryan Chia; Whitney Crosby; Karl Cunningham; Madison Easterling; Amanda Golchin; Caitlin McQueen; AJ Pastor ; Jenna Roney; Arieneh Tahmasian; Denise Tran; Kristen Vincent; Emily Weaver; Nicole Yoder, and Class of 2018 member Lydia Thiel.   
  _____________________
WE SALUTE
  
The Salus community extends a warm welcome to the following new members:
Amy Lustig, CCC-SLP Clinical Education, Speech-Language Institute 
Dana Nissenfield, Budget Manager. Finance

Allison Ousley,
 Coordinator, Development Support Services, Institutional Advancement		Lekpele Witherspoon, 
Housekeeper,
 Facilities
        ___________________________

The Salus community extends its sincere congratulations to the following members:

  Dr. Luis Trujillo, TEI instructor, who spent time performed eye exams in Chester, PA in the VSP Mobile Vision Clinic earlier this month and spent time with the community outreach sponsors VSP and the NBA star and Chester native Tyreke Evans.
(see box at right)
  
Andrea Tyszka, MSOTR/L, SIPT and Lauren Sponseller, OTD, MSOTR/L., MEd, and Occupational Therapy students Crystal Lane '16OT and Leighanna Milby '16OT, on their presentation at the New Jersey Occupational Therapy Association (NJOTA) conference this month at Kean University. The presentation focused on a community based fitness program that they created for children with autism. 
(see photo at right:
Ms. Tyszka and Dr. Sponseller)
             _____________________________  
 
The Salus community extends its sincere sympathy to the following members:
Karen Greave, Institutional Advancement, on the passing of her mother, Eileen Greave.
Ruth Henderson, TEI Appointment Center, on the passing of her brother, Robert Moore.
 
Lisa Kuehn, PA-C, assistant professor, Physician Assistant program, on the passing of her grandfather,
Eloy Gomez.

________________________________________________
White Coat Ceremony 
Pictured above L to R are: Craig Jackson '17PA and PCO Class of 2019 members Malwinder Bhathal, Matthew Awad and Corey Crouch.

The University's first year students in the optometry, audiology, physician assistant, occupational therapy and speech-language pathology degree programs received their white coats in a ceremony that took place on October 12 at Keneseth Israel synagogue in Elkins Park.
     With families and friends on hand, the students donned the symbol of their profession with the help of the dean and/or director of their program. The white coat ceremony is always a special day as the first-years receive tangible proof that they are no longer just students but healthcare professionals in the making. The students' pride and excitement is surpassed only by that of their families and friends. Read more
Speech-Language Institute Open House 

 
(Pictured above L to R: Salus Provost Janice Scharre; Clinical Director, Mr. Robert Serianni; President Michael H. Mittelman; Speech-Language Pathology program director and department chair, Dr. Carolyn Mayo; College of Education and Rehabilitation Dean Audrey Smith; Vice President of Clinical Operations, Mr. John Gaal)
  
The University's Speech-Language Institute (SLI) hosted an open house with a ribbon cutting ceremony on October 15. SLI is the clinical facility of the Department of Speech-Language Pathology (SLP). Located on the Elkins Park campus, the clinic has been open to clients since July.The highly-trained clinical faculty provide Primary Care to clients while supervising and mentoring SLP students as they gain important knowledge on evidence-based practice.  Read more
Physician Assistant Students/Faculty 
in the Pink

National Physician Assistant (PA) Week is celebrated every year from October 6-12. The date is significant, as the first class of PA students graduated from their program at Duke University on October 6, 1967.
    PA students across the nation are encouraged to show their enthusiasm for their chosen profession during this week. Salus PA students and faculty got together for a photo that illustrates their commitment to healthcare and their support for breast cancer awareness.  
New PCO/TEI Grand Rounds Programs
Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry and The Eye Institute have instituted a new Grand Rounds program. There are three upcoming sessions, October 23, November 15 and December 15. 
   At the October session, the presenters will be Dr. Kelly Malloy, director, TEI Neuro-Ophthalmic Service; Dr. Erin Draper and neuro-ophthalmic disease residents, Dr. Ashley McCann and Dr. Kelsey Moody.
    All three sessions will be held in the Toland Classroom at The Eye Institute from 7:30am to 8:45am. Additionally, they are open to local eyecare providers at no charge for participation and COPE approval has been submitted.
     The goals of the Grand Rounds program are to develop a network of professionals to share information and strengthen the clinical body of knowledge; to foster professional development in the optometric community and to provide Continuing Education opportunities to alumni and friends of Salus University.Read more. 
  
lumni Weekend April 1-3, 2016  
PCO Alumni Named Most Influential
As part of their 50th anniversary celebration, Optometric Management magazine is recognizing those who have made significant contributions to the profession of optometry. The magazine's editors emailed key opinion leaders and asked them to nominate people who "have contributed, are contributing or are likely to contribute to the betterment and/or advancement of eye care."
       We congratulate the following alumni of Pennsylvania College of Optometry who have been or will be profiled in the magazine: Dr. Irving Bennett '44; Dr. Lou Catania '69; Dr. A. Norman Haffner '54; Dr. Thomas L. Lewis '70
; Dr. Ron Melton '81; Dr. Leo Semes '78

 . We also congratulate three honorees with ties to PCO: Dr. Murray Fingeret, adjunct; Dr. Scot Morris, preceptor, and Dr. Dave Sattler, PCO Advisory Board member.   
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