NSUOCO Welcomes 26 New Optometry Students
Published: 2006-08-21
NSUOCO first-year students take The Optometric Oath during a ceremony and luncheon held Friday.
TAHLEQUAH Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry welcomed 26 first-year optometry students to campus last week with an orientation session and luncheon.
This is a great honor for you as much as it is a great honor for us, said NSU President Dr. Larry Williams, welcoming the students to campus. Youre in a wonderful situation, being selected to attend the No. 1 college of optometry in the U.S.
Students took The Pledge of Professionalism and The Optometric Oath before family, friends, and NSU faculty and staff.
NSUOCO Dean Dr. George Foster congratulated the students on being accepted into the prestigious profession.
You are the cream of the crop, said Foster. You should rejoice at this moment, as you embark on the next step in your education.
NSUOCO students spend four years of intensive hands-on study, with particular emphasis put on treating the Native American population of Oklahoma. Through a partnership between NSUOCO and the Cherokee Nation, students, residents and faculty experience more than 40,000 patient encounters annually through the Rural Eye Program. The Rural Eye Program provides for optometry clinics located in the Cherokee Nation Rural Health Care system, including Wilma P. Mankiller Health Center, Redbird Smith Health Center, Sam Hider Community Clinic, and AMO Community Clinic.
The partnership between NSUOCO and the Cherokee Nation also allows for the Chester H. Pheiffer Optometry Clinic in W.W. Hastings Indian Medical Center. NSUOCO is also home to a clinic is located in the Optometry Building at NSU.
NSUOCO is Oklahomas only college of optometry and one of 17 in the nation.