Dr. Richard W. Phillips, president of Southern College of Optometry, has been appointed to the board of trustees for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools – Commission on Colleges. In his role, Phillips will serve on a board of 77 trustees, meeting two times per year to oversee the accreditation of higher education institutions in 11 southern states. SACS is the only accrediting body serving these southern states, and accredits public, private, for-profit and not-for-profit schools at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels.
“We’re very proud of Dr. Phillips being named to the SACS board of trustees,” said Dr. Jarrett Johnson, chair of the board of trustees at SCO. “He’s served SCO so well in the last five years, and I know he will be a great asset to advancing higher education with SACS.”
Phillips has served as president of SCO since 2007. His accomplishments in this role include growing the college’s clinical services, enhancing technology in the classrooms and overseeing the $9.4 million campus expansion set to open in August 2013. Throughout his career, Phillips has served as president of the Tennessee Association of Optometric Physicians (formerly the Tennessee Optometric Association), chair of the professional relations committee of the American Optometric Association, a fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and a member of the executive committee of the Tennessee College Association. He has been honored as Rotarian of the year by the Memphis Rotary Club and as optometrist of the year by the Tennessee Optometric Association.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for me, for SCO and for optometric education to serve in this capacity,” Phillips said. “I’m honored to represent our college and the state of Tennessee on this board.”
About Southern College of Optometry
Southern College of Optometry was established in Memphis, Tenn., in 1932. SCO is an independent, not-for-profit institution of higher education with more than 500 students and residents from 40 states. The Eye Center at SCO serves nearly 80,000 patients annually, helping make the college one of the top in the nation for clinical optometric education. SCO’s Community Outreach Program reaches more than 12,000 children through vision screenings provided annually to Shelby County students in public, private and charter schools. For more information on SCO, please visit www.sco.edu.