STUDENT CENTERED EXPERIENCE - Erin Lutley, Class of 2020 Erin is the student representative on SUNY Optometry’s College Council, which consists of 10 members; the Governor appoints nine and one is a peer-elected student. “The best part of being a Council member has been meeting so many people who truly care about the advancement of SUNY Optometry and the betterment of its students, faculty and patient population.” Danielle Mirzokandova, Class of 2021 Danielle questioned the influence of corporations on optometric education. “Optometry has come a long way in its brief history. It is now our turn as the next generation of optometrists to continue that fight.” Samuel Stack, Class of 2020 Samuel received the 2018 J. Pat Cummings Scholarship from Johnson & Johnson Vision in collaboration with the American Academy of Optometry Foundation. “I wanted to be an optometrist from the moment I watched my mother fit a keratonic patient with an RGP lens and saw the patient’s face light up because he could finally see clearly.” Brenda Tan, Class of 2019 Brenda received the 2018 Practice Excellence Scholarship from the American Academy of Optometry Foundation and VSP Global. The OD/MS student researches the pathogenesis of myopia. “The interest stemmed from being myopic myself and watching the incidence of myopia skyrocket in Hong Kong and China, which is where my parents are originally from.” Hannah Medwin, Class of 2020 The current Student Council president almost didn’t apply to SUNY Optometry. Hannah received her undergraduate degree from The University of Alabama (roll tide!) and thought she would stay in the South forever. “I applied to the College mostly to make my mom happy, and honestly didn’t even know if I would get an interview because it is such a competitive school,” she says. It turned out to be a wonderful decision. “I was immediately sold when I came for my interview. Everyone was so friendly and the facilities are impressive.” If you ask most alumni about their fondest memories of their time at SUNY Optometry, they will point to when they got to interact with their classmates outside the classroom and the lab. Many of those moments are courtesy of the Student Council, which works to deepen the sense of community on campus. It’s labor that Hannah—who has always been drawn to leadership positions—relishes. “Serving on Student Council has allowed me to get to know more people, which is something I just love to do. And I like knowing what happens behind the scenes and being involved in making changes and improvements. I have an amazing team of other council members who make everything even more fun.” “The OD program is obviously rigorous and time-consuming, but we plan events to help students kick back and relax, which I think is so important.” – Hannah Medwin 411 total enrollment in professional and graduate programs, 2018 2018 ANNUAL REPORT 5
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