General News
Current Student News
Optometry
The past few months have been an exciting time for the Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Drexel University! We are quickly approaching the end of another great year of education and milestones, and we look forward to celebrating the amazing accomplishments of our Class of 2026 graduates this month. We want to share with you some exciting updates, upcoming events, and future plans for the institution.
We are extremely honored to announce that, after our scheduled accreditation evaluation visit in November of 2025, the Pennsylvania College of Optometry retains its status as an Accredited School of Optometry. We would like to thank all of our amazing faculty, alumni, and students for their hard work and dedication to maintaining such a successful and prestigious educational program.
In other news, we are also proud to have awarded 126 first-year Doctor of Optometry students their White Coats at our annual ceremony. They represent the future of not only PCO but also the profession of optometry as a whole, and we look forward to watch them evolve throughout their educational experience at PCO.
PCO also continues to build its clinical education programs with the introduction of two new residency emphasis: Primary Care with an emphasis in glaucoma and Primary Care with an emphasis in retina. We believe these unique perspectives of primary optometric care will further distinguish our clinical excellence and allow students to hone their knowledge in specialty care. Both programs are offered to the Class of 2026 graduates in addition to our previously established residency programs.
We have also celebrated some outstanding members of our PCO and Drexel Community recently. Dr. Elise Ciner, optometrist and clinical professor, was awarded the 2026 Provost Award for Outstanding Advanced Career Excellence. Dr. Ciner teaches courses in Pediatric Optometry and Vision Science and Perception and is heavily involved in optometric research. We are honored to have her as a part of our community and offer her our biggest congratulations for this very well-deserved recognition.
Some noteworthy upcoming events include the Class of 2026 commencement ceremony on Thursday, May 21, at the Academy of Music. Keynote speaker Joseph P. Shovlin, OD ‘80, FAAO, will address our graduating students from the Traditional Optometry program, Accelerated Scholars Optometry program, and Advanced Placement Optometry program at the ceremony in Center City, Philadelphia. We are extremely proud to award each graduate their Doctor of Optometry degree and celebrate their many accomplishments.
Another upcoming event is the PCO Alumni and Friends Reception at the upcoming AOA Meeting in Phoenix. The event will take place on Thursday, June 18, 2026, from 5 to 7 p.m.; we hope to see you there. If we miss you in Phoenix, please join us for the Fall 2026 Homecoming event or the Fall 2026 Looking Out for Kids Charity Event. Keep an eye out for more information regarding these events as the time approaches.
When reflecting on this past year, we have seen substantial growth in many aspects, but with growth often comes growing pains. We continue to reevaluate, learn from the past, and move forward stronger together.
Our short-term visions include stabilizing the culture and restoring trust within the community, between students, faculty, leadership, and alumni alike, integrating operations and implementing successful marketing and branding techniques, fostering an atmosphere of communication and transparency, and supporting advocacy on all levels. Our long-term vision centers around strengthening PCO in Drexel University and continuously evaluating and improving outcomes regarding NBEO, PCO/Drexel research, enrollment, faculty excellence, and student success.
We want to prioritize the people and relationships within our community; our greatest assets are truly our staff, students, residents, alumni, donors, and patients, and therefore we strive every day to foster a “relationship-rich” environment where all stakeholders feel seen, supported, and connected. We also want to strengthen PCO’s identity within Drexel University: rather than an extension of the larger University, we strive to participate in events, interprofessional education, and educational activities of Drexel University, while fully integrating the cultures of both institutions.
In addition, if you have any Class Notes or In Memoriam news to report, please send those to our Communications Department at salus_communications@drexel.edu. This would also include We Salute items like retirements, birth announcements and weddings.
As a part of our alumni network, we value your input, feedback, and support of our students and institution. We encourage you to serve as an ambassador wherever you are able: local, national, and international meetings alike. We also encourage you to visit campus for many of our aforementioned events, attend PCO continuing education programs, help recruit students by spreading the word about optometry at PCO, serve on the Alumni Advisory Board, and share your stories about your own experience here. We thank you for your continued support; may we always remain PCO strong.
Sincerely,
Josephine O. Ibironke, OD, MPH, FAAO
Dean
Pennsylvania College of Optometry
