SCO COVID-19 News & Updates

Like other colleges and universities across the country, the global coronavirus pandemic has impacted Southern College of Optometry. Events have unfolded rapidly, so there's been a steady stream of updates and news. We will share future updates on this page, but please also continue to monitor your email as specific groups may receive targeted email instructions.

Tuesday, May 19, 2020

5/19/20 Update from President Reich

Dear SCO family,

Our summer semester is off to a great start, with our third-year students already participating in online lectures this week.

We recently surveyed employees for them to self-identify vulnerabilities needed for scheduling remote work or childcare needs. A similar survey is being developed for our students.

We are planning virtual campus-wide meetings to discuss a lot of the specific protocols that are being finalized for our safety. Be thinking of questions. This is new for all of us, so there's even more information to learn.

In the interim, it's important to read these email updates. Pay attention as we near reopening so you know how these plans affect you.

Here are critical points to emphasize this week:

Travel

Students: Next week, third-years and fourth-year interns with SCO clinical rotations will start returning to Memphis so they're here by June 1. This gives them a two-week window to make sure they're free of COVID-19 symptoms before coming to campus on June 15.
Employees: If you have trips planned, please rethink them if they are out of state. Also plan to to be in town for the two weeks prior to return to campus. If you travel outside Memphis, please let your supervisor know.
Students driving to Part III of their rescheduled NBEO exams this summer may be reasonably accommodated if extra travel time is needed and requested in advance.

Reopening

Employees will return to work the week of June 8. HR is emailing those who have self-identified the need for interim accommodations to continue working remotely from home.
Third-year interns and summer fourth-year interns are returning for labs and clinic assignments starting June 15.
Second-year interns will join us later in July. Summer didactic instruction will continue to be held online.
To spread out labs for social distancing, lanes will be set up in areas like the eighth floor and the Activity Center.
To maintain social distancing, students will not be permitted to study in groups and should generally plan to leave campus when clinic or lab assignments are completed to minimize exposure.

Schedules

Not everyone will be on campus at the same time this summer. Many departments are developing staggered schedules for staffing that will enable us to minimize the amount of people on campus each day.
Some people may be in the office in the morning, only to switch out with someone else in the afternoon.
Clinical schedules have also been developed to limit the numbers of people in each suite and commons areas.
With staggered schedules, not everyone will arrive at the same time each day. This will be necessary for the temperature screenings required to enter through designated checkpoints.
For employees who clock into ADP, we are looking at plans for cleaning kiosks or allowing mobile device logins to reduce touchscreen cross-contamination risks.
We're also finalizing details to communicate about library hours.

COVID-19 Testing

SCO is negotiating with several firms. We will select one to assist with administering COVID-19 tests for all employees. Schedules will be communicated in advance.

Food

We continue to interview prospects for our fourth floor dining vendors.
Keep in mind there will be no fresh food options this summer on campus other than vending machines.
Seating sections of the fourth floor will be partitioned off to maintain proper social distancing because of the aerosol risks involved when people take off masks for eating and drinking.

Masks

As communicated last week, anyone on the SCO campus must wear a mask. This is not optional.
A supply of surgical masks will be provided to Security to give to anyone coming to campus over the next few weeks without a mask.
Masks are to be worn in public areas or well-traveled areas like elevators. Masks can be removed in the privacy of an office.
Masks will continue to be required when we reopen.

FocalPoint at Crosstown Concourse

Crosstown Concourse similarly requires anyone entering the building to wear a mask. If you don't have one, two on-site spots are selling them.
Temperature and safety screenings will be performed just inside FocalPoint.
Patient care delivery protocols are as stringent as those for The Eye Center and being finalized in conjunction with Church Health's eyecare colleagues.

University Eyecare

University Eyecare will remain closed for the rest of the summer.
Staffing is being reassigned temporarily to our other clinical facilities.

Conclusion

Just reading these plans, you can see how detailed and involved many of the new protocols will be. Like much of the country, our leadership team had to rethink or reinvent how we conduct much of our daily business.

Our mission, however, remains the same, and we're committed to providing the best optometric education possible, outstanding patient care, and a safe campus atmosphere for us all.

We're all looking forward to being together again - safely distanced and masked - soon!

Lewis Reich, O.D., Ph.D.
President

at Tuesday, May 19, 2020

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

5/5/20 Update from President Reich

Dear SCO Family,

First, congratulations to SCO's Class of 2020 as we celebrate them becoming Doctors of Optometry on what would have been their commencement day. We're very proud of all the award recipients who were honored earlier today. Thanks to all the faculty and staff who worked to create the online program and the students who participated.

Our Student Services team will be verifying board requirements have been met so transcripts can be sent. They're also making plans to mail diplomas. I know our new graduates are eager to start practicing this summer.

The President's Council has continued to meet, so here are some key updates:

A more detailed summer schedule message will be shared with our new fourth- and third-year students, but we are asking that they plan to return to Memphis on June 1. This will give them time to prepare for our planned June 15th reopening, including the two week period of self-isolation or social distancing recommended, depending on their travel mode and interaction with others on their way back to Memphis.

The second-year mini-term is scheduled to begin July 13, so those students should expect to receive similar travel instructions at the appropriate time.

Our Financial Aid and Accounting teams have been working to prepare materials to be sent to students ahead of their May 18 registration date.

The leadership team is providing feedback on some very detailed protocols for our campus safety when we return. As you can imagine, there are many details still to be determined, like where to use thermal temperature checks to screen arriving employees and students in different locations each day.

As you might expect, there will be rigorous Personal Protective Equipment used for patient care and in clinical settings. Our Clinical Programs are continuing to receive shipments of PPE. More than 40,000 masks will have arrived in a couple of weeks if shipping proceeds as indicated.

Masks also will be required and provided to employees and staff outside clinic settings in the tower. These measures, along with continued social distancing, will help us do our part to keep each other as safe as we can.

Human Resources is working on other measures to determine individuals who may be more at risk, as well as strategies for making sure that we do all that we can to promote a healthy work environment. At the appropriate time, everyone will be required to read and acknowledge these new procedures similar to how we review our student or employee handbooks.

Some of these topics may be discussed in more detail on Wednesday's faculty and staff calls, but please bear with us as we finalize more detailed policies and procedures. As others begin to reopen slowly, their best practices may benefit us throughout May as we work toward our own reopening timeline.

I look forward to talking with employees tomorrow and seeing students in June. Please continue to stay safe and healthy to help make this a reality.

Best regards,
Lewis Reich

at Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Thursday, April 16, 2020

4/16/20 Update from President Reich

Dear SCO Community,

The President's Council met today and reviewed the agenda and discussion items for next week's virtual Board of Trustees meeting set for April 24 at 1 pm. We previewed much of the discussion for you in Tuesday's update, but the big focus remains on our ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the budgetary and educational program delivery implications.

Future Planning

Additional discussion today gave us preliminary updates on some of the plans for instruction and clinical delivery. These plans will be critical to SCO safely and successfully reopening later this summer. All service areas of our Clinical Programs will have completed their plans by April 30 to review with clinic leadership. Once finalized, these plans will be communicated appropriately.

We recognize, too, that the landscape may continue to look different with short-term strategies for interviewing prospective students remotely or providing virtual tours before travel can be safely resumed. A lot of work remains to be done, but the President's Council is confident that we will be successful by staying focused and positive in the coming months.

Senior Awards

In the interim, we're making plans for our online Senior Awards Ceremony to be held on May 5. Additional details are being finalized, but we plan to record this livestream so parents, family, friends, and industry partners can watch.

An Announcement about the Blink Diner

Last, we wanted to share with you some other news. Before the pandemic started, Melissa Hardage, proprietor of the Blink Diner on our fourth floor, advised us that she intended to leave in May for family and personal reasons.

May 8th will be her team's last official date. The college has begun the search for a new caterer to provide us with food options. The goal is to have a new team in place beginning with the start of the fall term. We're so very grateful to Melissa, Glaze, and her team for cooking and catering the last several years.

We recognize, too, that many of our students will have returned home without the chance to say goodbye, so we will be making a social media post soon so you can thank Blink for all those delicious cupcakes and other tasty treats that we've enjoyed the last several years. We're appreciative for all that Blink has done, so I know they'll appreciate hearing from you, too.

In the interim, please keep healthy and safe until our next update.

Lewis Reich

at Thursday, April 16, 2020

COVID-19

Monday, April 6, 2020

COVID-19 Admissions Update

The SCO Admissions Office remains open during the COVID-19 pandemic, and we are happy to answer any questions you may have. It’s best to send an email to [email protected], but if your situation is unique or complex, feel free to email us and include your phone number, and we will call you as soon as possible.

Along those lines, we thought it was important to tell candidates that we are accepting Pass/Fail grades for prerequisites taken during Winter and Spring 2020. We prefer a letter grade if the student has a choice, but again, Pass/Fail will be accepted. Once the situation regarding COVID-19 stabilizes, we will evaluate our policy for the Summer 2020 term.

At this time, we have made no changes to our deadlines for Fall 2021 candidates. OptomCAS is set to open the application cycle on June 29, and we will accept supplemental applications as soon as the candidate has an OptomCAS ID. Should this change, we will update our website immediately. Stay safe

at Monday, April 6, 2020

COVID-19

Tuesday, March 31, 2020

3/31/20 Update from President Reich

SCO campus,

Today's update predominately includes important information for our students, but I'm including the entire campus, so everyone hears this at the same time. There are some critical details to share today.

Remainder of this semester

With explicit federal guidance advising complete social distancing through April 30 (with a possibility that this will need to be extended), the campus must remain closed for the rest of this semester.

As far as didactic courses, we will continue with online participation through the end of this semester. All students must continue to participate and complete all online classes and exams in order to get a grade.

Even though SCO has advised you to shelter in place, we ask that you use your own best judgment about your own plans. Please know that if you return home, you should seriously take into account the risks involved with traveling either by plane or by car. You should also factor the COVID-19 infection numbers if you live in one of the most at-risk areas. If you travel to another state, please make sure that you are familiar with the COVID-19 precautions there.

Wherever you decide to finish this semester, you must have high-speed Internet access in order to finish your online academic requirements.

For the Classes of 2020 and in particular the Class of 2021, even if you go home, you are still expected to participate in online instruction as required as we continue to monitor and assess plans for the future administration of your clinical education curriculum.

The Class of 2020 will be involved in the planning of their commencement exercises to be held at the appropriate time, once it is safe to do so.

Return to campus

Based on the available data, our current plan is that the campus will reopen for instruction on June 15. Faculty and staff would need to arrive several days before the students in order to get the campus ready for a regular resumption of our normal schedule. A date will be communicated at the appropriate time for employees. Please understand that factors beyond our control may require us to change this anticipated return date.

Dr. Lindsay Elkins is finalizing a plan on the resumption of labs and didactic instruction. Then, plans for clinical instruction will be put into place. This information will be communicated well in advance, and should allow for completion of instruction missed by our forced closure concurrent with the summer term,

We anticipate registration will happen as normal this fall for our incoming first-year students and our rising second- and third-year classes. Depending on the resumption of our normal schedule, we will look at the appropriate timeline for our fourth-year class. Should we have a delayed registration for our rising fourth year students, we are reviewing options to help ensure that you can receive the loans for which you applied to cover living expenses.

Tuition

The administration is pleased to announce that there will be no tuition increase for the 2020-21 academic year. Though our anticipated reopening plans support all current class years completing the program in four years, should the Class of 2021 have to complete a portion of the program in the summer of 2021, there will be no additional tuition cost beyond what is currently committed for a four-year program completion.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this update involves a lot of information. This crisis continues to unfold. If you've seen today's reports, our country's infection rate curve is sharply higher than that of China or Italy, the two countries previously most affected.

It is anticipated that April will be a critical time for our country. Social distancing is scientifically cited as the most critical tool in the public health arsenal for minimizing exposure and infection risk. I ask that each of you continue to take this seriously in order for us to contribute to our nation's recovery as soon as possible.

In the interim, online Q&A sessions are being planned for faculty, staff, and students to answer more questions in-depth. Some of the answers may involve follow-up given that these plans are being formulated remotely by the administration.

Thanks to each of you for taking the time to read this critical update,

Lewis Reich
President

at Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Thursday, March 19, 2020

SCO Updates about COVID-19 Pandemic

We know that many of our alumni and friends are being impacted by the global coronavirus pandemic. We encourage each of you to stay safe and please let our Alumni Relations office know if you have your own news to share or if there are questions that we can answer.

Here is a big picture overview of information about SCO's status that we wanted to share with you:

SCO closed Monday, March 16 and will be closed for an undetermined amount in time, in part because of the practical reality that college classrooms contain large numbers of students unsafe for large group gatherings per the CDC's recommendations. The campus itself is a high traffic area, compounded by the public coming onto campus as patients. You may read more details in a message from President Lewis Reich, OD, PhD.
SCO's first- and second-year students are attending classes remotely as our faculty lecture via videoconferencing. Pictured is Professor John Mark Jackson, OD '99, lecturing to students watching at home.
SCO's externship rotations have been suspended.
SCO's clinical care was suspended for MobilEYES, University Eyecare, and FocalPoint at Crosstown Concourse.
The Eye Center is being staffed by a small number of faculty volunteers handling ocular emergencies only.
Faculty members are working on a longer-term plan for providing distance instruction modalities to enable learning opportunities for students unable to participate in labs and clinical care.
Commencement was postponed; the hosting venue has canceled all scheduled rentals for the foreseeable future.
The college is working on a plan for helping the Class of 2020 finish successfully. Read more in the message to our fourth-year students.
SCO's Class of 1970 50th reunion originally set for May has been rescheduled for Fall Homecoming and CE Weekend.
Testing sites closed this week just as our third-years were set to take their National Boards.
Spring CE was canceled. Those who had already registered will be offered refunds. Don't forget that SCO maintains an extensive online video library of COPE-approved CE courses that you may safely take from afar.
All other special events for the foreseeable future have been postponed.

The college's leadership team has been meeting regularly to respond to events and create plans for dealing with this public health crisis. There have been no reports of any SCO student or employee infected by the virus, although four individuals in Shelby County have tested positive as of this writing. U.S. Senator John Boozman, OD '77, noted in an interview this week his opinion that the crisis represents one of the greatest challenges to American society since World War II.

As we've communicated to our students, SCO has faced institutional challenges in the past. Although the present circumstances are difficult, your messages of support and goodwill mean a lot to our students, so thank you in advance for helping us boost their morale as we look forward. Our students appreciate each of you who make SCO a stronger institution because of your support.

at Thursday, March 19, 2020

COVID-19

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Commencement 2020

Class of 2020,

As optometry students about to use your skills to join the ranks of our nation's healthcare providers, I'm sure you've been monitoring the rapidly developing global pandemic. The CDC has recommended no group gatherings of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks.

Under those guidelines, you can see the difficult position that colleges and universities are facing. SCO is no exception, so regrettably, we must postpone May 5^th commencement plans as they currently stand. You can begin to notify your friends and family. We know how upsetting this will be, even more so because you represent the Class of 2020. Just your 2020 graduation year alone has always held a special connotation.

Here's where the situation currently stands. SCO is actively working with our sister institutions to craft a plan where the profession could collectively verify that your class has met graduation requirements. Because SCO has traditionally embraced such a rigorous clinical education program, we believe that we are able to assess each student's competency for the high standards expected of our graduates.

This plan is still in development and must ultimately be acceptable to the United States Department of Education, so please exercise patience as we work on this for you. Once we have more guidance, we will be in a much better position of evaluating alternative options. We're communicating this decision to let you know that SCO is working with all other optometric programs.

In the interim, we're also hard at work on some ideas where you may each still be able to participate in a more traditional ceremony. Thanks to each of you in advance for your understanding and cooperation during these unprecedented and challenging times.

Please stay healthy,

Dr. Lewis Reich
President
Southern College of Optometry

at Tuesday, March 17, 2020

COVID-19

Sunday, March 15, 2020

3/15/20 Coronavirus (COVID-19) update from SCO President, Dr. Lewis Reich

Everyone,

Events have continued to unfold at a rapid pace related to the national emergency response to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Public and private institutions are on the frontlines helping the nation flatten the infection curve to keep cases from overwhelming our healthcare system’s capacity to assist those most at risk, including seniors and those with underlying chronic health conditions.

In consultation with our senior leadership and other institutions, Southern College of Optometry has decided to prioritize public health safety. As noted in previous communications, while no COVID-19 cases have been reported at SCO, the increasing number of infections poses serious risks to students, employees, and others in clinical settings.

Taking into consideration the public health risks to clinical eyecare delivery, we have a number of critical updates to communicate:

The decision has been made to suspend all clinical assignments in The Eye Center, University Eyecare, FocalPoint, and MobilEyes and in-person laboratory teaching, effective immediately and until further notice.
- University Eyecare and FocalPoint will be completely closed until further notice.
Things could change extremely quickly, so everyone must regularly monitor emails, texts, and social media updates in this unfolding situation
Effective Monday, March 16th, lecture attendance will no longer be optional, all lectures will be online only until further notice. Students may hear from course instructors with additional details. The college will closely monitor and work to ensure a smooth transition to this method of teaching.
SCO students should not attend their in-person courses, clinic rotations, or labs until further notice. Students should not come onto campus unless otherwise notified.
The Eye Center will suspend regular patient care. Steps are being taken to notify patient care appointments.
A volunteer team of faculty members and limited staff will be on hand in The Eye Center to triage emergency care only. The idea is to help keep patients from flooding hospital emergency rooms if we can be of assistance.
SCO recommends that all students and employees do not attempt to travel to reduce the opportunity for exposure to COVID-19. Everyone should practice social distancing.
Employees should not come onto campus, with the exception of those who may be requested as needed to assist to volunteer. Unless you’re requested by your Vice President (or director/manager consulting with your Vice President), you should not come to campus.
Employees will be receiving separate information at the appropriate interval with additional details about compensation, in part related to pending federal legislation addressing the national emergency.

By working together, we hope to do our part to help minimize the spread of this infectious pandemic. As soon as we’re able to resume in a safe manner, SCO will do so. We understand the concern students will feel about their academic progress. Please know that the college will continue working with ACOE and others in our field for best practice recommendations.

Please monitor your email, the college’s website, and social media for additional updates. As stressful as this unprecedented situation may seem, we are mindful that there are thousands of infected patients across the nation and many more around the globe. As educators and healthcare providers, society looks to institutions like SCO for trust when it comes to patient care safety.

Individual questions are welcomed as this situation unfolds. SCO appreciates your continued commitment to the high standards that have made the college a leader in optometric education and the region’s leading eyecare provider. SCO was founded during the Great Depression and survived WWII when most of our students were called away to service. With your cooperation, we can work together through this latest challenge and emerge stronger when this crisis passes.

Lewis Reich, O.D., Ph.D.
President
Southern College of Optometry

at Sunday, March 15, 2020

COVID-19

Thursday, March 12, 2020

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: Message from SCO President

A Message from SCO President, Dr. Lewis Reich, re: SCO’s ongoing response and action plan to the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic outbreak:

You may have heard that many colleges are universities are moving to a distance-learning format. By the very nature of an optometry college’s mission, this option is more challenging in part because of the labs and clinical learning experiences required for our students to demonstrate mastery of clinical skills as required for their license to practice optometry.

Social distancing is being encouraged by the CDC. This particularly applies to college students because they gather in large groups at one time. In SCO’s case, we have 130+ students sitting in close proximity to each other for an extended period of time. We have explored ways to increase social distancing for our students.

We’re communicating to our students that we continue to test online lecture capabilities for our students. The first-year class test was successful. The second-year class is being tested this afternoon. Tomorrow, we are testing our third-year class capabilities.

If these video lecture tests continue to be successful, we intend to implement a plan to give students the option to watch lectures by video from home through March 28. Midterms would continue as planned the week after next. We will continue to evaluate and monitor our options through this March 28 date.

During midterm week, students will be encouraged to spread out in the lecture hall for social distancing. We have also encouraged all students to practice social distancing outside the college.

Labs and clinic assignments are still unchanged but we will continue to monitor the situation for both. Lab groups are much smaller and we are able to control the sanitation in those environments. We cannot replicate those technical skill assessments in a virtual format.

Students are being encouraged to continue practicing good health and hygiene measures for cleanliness. This practice must be embraced by faculty and staff as well.

To the entire campus:

If you’re ill, please stay home and notify your supervisor. Human Resources may follow up with additional information for employees in terms of PTO or other flexible options. Students should notify Student Services for excused absences.
In terms of patient care, our Clinical Programs are using phone scripts to pre-screen for appointments. Our clinical employees have received additional specific instructions from Dr. Venable today. The Eye Center is being sanitized four times a day.
Our Physical Plant continues to keep the entire campus clean, including surfaces, doorknobs, armrests, and other areas. Purell stations are located around the campus. Please use them. Digital signage is emphasizing proper handwashing techniques – please continue to practice frequent handwashing.
International travel continues to be suspended until the end of the semester. Those who choose to travel internationally should monitor this ongoing situation and know that travel may become challenging. Quarantine may occur.
We continue to evaluate social engagement and other programming. Decisions will made on a case by case basis in the coming weeks.

At this time, we are not aware of anyone in the SCO community having reported exposure to COVID-19. We remain vigilant, with particular care being taken in terms of preventive measures as outlined above.

We will continue to provide additional updates as the situation warrants. We recognize this is a fluid crisis, so please be continue to monitor your email, local, state, and national news reports.

These two resources have been recommended by the government for helping keep us all informed:

Thanks again to each of you for helping keep each other and our campus safe.

Lewis Reich, O.D., Ph.D.
President
Southern College of Optometry

at Thursday, March 12, 2020

COVID-19

Monday, March 9, 2020

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update

At Southern College of Optometry, the health and safety of our patients and campus community is a critical priority. With the national coronavirus (COVID-19) cases reported in Tennessee and other states, we will continue to monitor the outbreak. Based on recommendations of the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other appropriate health agencies, we are working to keep our campus clean and safe.

With prevention being the best protection against the coronavirus and other infectious diseases, we are encouraging patients to reschedule appointments if they are ill (coughing, sneezing, fever, shortness of breath, or other serious symptoms). Frequent handwashing is crucially important. Signage has also been placed in our clinics to reinforce this message and to encourage handwashing.

If you have additional questions or concerns about this outbreak, we encourage you to monitor updates from the local health authorities and the CDC. Thank you for working with us to keep us all safe and healthy.

at Monday, March 9, 2020