SLP Capstone Presentations: Week of April 5th

Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends,

Greetings from a cold and rainy Elkins Park. What happened to Spring??? The campus has been a little quieter than usual since some of our programs are on their Spring break.

Earlier this week I attended the annual meeting of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania (AICUP) in Harrisburg. The most important issue they are working on, in my opinion as it pertains to us, involves potential changes to federal financial aid programs and how ultimately loans will be paid back. We (Salus) have been very strong advocates for deferral of interest accrual until after graduation as well as expansion of shortage area loan forgiveness programs that include all of our professions. I’m not overly optimistic we’ll see quick changes, but my plan is to be the “squeaky wheel” since very few are raising these issues. 

Yesterday, students from the Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) program presented their capstone project posters to a good size crowd in the Hafter Center, including Dr. Eckert and I. The work was fantastic and really a reflection of all the hard work both the students and faculty mentors put into these projects over the course a semester. Well done!

We’re less than a month away from our Centennial celebration. Dr. Jeff Nyman and I were interviewed by Monica Cryan from PHL17, who just happens to be Dr. Pagani’s daughter, earlier this week and I had the pleasure of being interviewed yesterday by Patty Jackson from WDAS (105.3), which was lots of fun. Both interviews centered on PCO’s heritage and the commitment we have had to our community over the past 100 years. So, I hope this helps to motivate you to purchase your tickets for the Gala. There’s still some time. Just click here to get your tickets.

Next week many of us will be in Washington, DC to help the American Optometric Association educate several Congressional leaders about optometry and some of the national legislative issues that affect how we all practice. I’m always excited about participating in these events and even more excited that our students will be engaged, which is so very important.

I hope everyone has a safe and restful weekend and has a chance to get out and enjoy some of the early buds and flowers. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate!

Mike