Optical school closing doors

[Optical Misfit]

Just received a letter from Owens Community College. Letter is informing previous graduates the the Optical program is closing their doors. Reason being the lack of enrollment. Over the last ten years this was one of only three schools in Ohio offering this program.

As I was a graduate and instructor at the school it really saddens me that this occurs. The school has been around for 26 years. Started as a Optometric Technician program; then accredited as an Opticians program in early 90's as well as a COT program in late 90's. The school has alway produced very qualified personnel. State board pass rate on the first try was 99% for all programs.

When I was in private practice that is where all the personnel was hired from. Yes, I do support the school whenever I could. I am proud of my degree and try to persuade anyone who want to be in this profession to get their degree then their license.

This is a sad state for the optical industry in the state of Ohio and in many other locations, when a fine establishment has to close their doors because we have become an industry of sales people. The general public does not have the respect for our profession. I became an optician because of the optician I meet as a child.
My wife and I both graduated from this program and still practice in a different area. We try to educate others and are always promoting our careers with high school students. Whenever we do talk with other, there is the promotion of higher education in our speeches.

I thought others on this board would be interested in another red mark hitting our profession. If there are any other prior students of the school lets hear your feelings on the matter.

Thank everyone for letting me voice my thoughts to people who would listen.

Optical Misfit:( :( :( :( :( :angry:

[wmcdonald]

This school was never accredited by the Commission on Opticianry Accreditation, the sole accrediting agency for Opticianry programs in the US.

[Darris Chambless]

Way to rub salt in those wounds Warren.

Sorry to hear about the old alma mater, Optical Misfit. I do hope that all that graduated from the institution are still in the business. Good people are always necessary to the value of a business as well as a practice.

Take care,

Darris C.

[wmcdonald]

Not meant to rub salt! Only to correct a fact. The school was never accredited as stated. I wish the school had made it and attempted to meet the standards. I too am saddened by the loss, and wish you all well.

[Optical Misfit]

I stated incorrectly. The school was recognized by the State Board of Ohio. The students were able to take the state boards upon graduation from the program. The program was very well received and supported by Optometrist and Ophthalmologist in the area. Unfortunately big business was not always so kind. Some of the graduates even went on with their education and became Optometrist.

Hopefully there are others from the program who can share some of their positive responses. Also I hope that in the future the school will be able to reestablish the program.

[wmcdonald]

Please let us know what we can do to assist. The academic side is key to our advancement. If you need assistance please contact COA (Commission on Opticianry Accreditation) (www.coaccreditation.com) and we will be pleased to provide a list of consultants to help. I hope the Ohio Opticians have provided some input as well. They are a good group with large numbers.
Best wishes

[Cindy Hamlin]

I know I will probably get beat up for this and before I start don't get me wrong....

I am saddened by the fact that your school closed and that Quinsigamond (sp?) closed in Massachusetts, but isn't the big problem that the enrollment declined?

In licensed states the demand for licensed opticians has not decreased! As a matter of fact, with Target and various other department stores opening optical shops, the demand is greater!

So with that said, the problem lies in the mindset that optical isn't the field people want to pursue. We are losing people to the computer fields.

I know that my company has decided to grow our opticians from within and subsidize their getting their state licenses. How can that be bad?

Schools close because they lack students, not because any entity gets them closed. I have spoken with several schools lately that have an increase in their enrollment and that is due to one thing- distance learning via the internet!

It is the key to getting more people educated. Almost everyone has a computer, but does everyone have an opticianry school? I don't think so!

[kjw1231]

I graduated from ECC in 1985. I heard that they are considering closing also. This after they merged with Mater Dei a few years ago. I guess graduating 5 this year and 6 to follow may shut it down.

I proposed changes to the Dean a few years ago, which went unheard. I proposed that (now that New York recognizes ABO for the written) that this would be a Certificate program. For an AAS, it should then include contact lenses. For a BS, ECC could have offered an Ophthalmic Assistant program to include JCHAPO certification, as there is an Ophthalmology school at a local university. Strange, but another school in the area (SUNY at Fredonia) will be offering an OD program in 2003. Also, I proposed a 25 question written test at the practical, but that was scoffed at also.

I just wonder if this might be good in the short term. If there are less Opticians to go around, salaries would rise. I can see the chains getting involved to eliminate licensing all together. I know of several local OD's that would be more than happy to see that happen, sad but true.

[blueyes]

Cindi, You hit the nail on the head. This is so true. As you can see, I too am from a licensed state (so is wmcdonald). I am proud to be working in a licensed state. We fight for our rights, and so should others in the field. It pays off in MANY ways.

[Johns]

[QUOTE]kjw1231 said:

" I just wonder if this might be good in the short term. If there are less Opticians to go around, salaries would rise. I can see the chains getting involved to eliminate licensing all together. "
****************************************************

This can't be "good for the short term" because with fewer opticians (strength in numbers) there will only be a short term (left).

[blueyes]

Cindi, You hit the nail on the head. This is so true. As you can see, I too am from a licensed state (so is wmcdonald). I am proud to be working in a licensed state. We fight for our rights, and so should others in the field. It pays off in MANY ways.

[wmcdonald]

Ohio was the last state licensed in this country 20 or so years ago. They are a strong state with a good licensing law and state association. Unfortunately that is not the problem. We never embraced academic training that would allow us to advance professionally and limited ourselves to basic and minimal certification. ABO certification is BASIC- sorry to those who had a hard time. We didn't require a background in optics at all, only the ability to SELL eyeglasses. That is not their fault, but OURS!Many of us don't want to assume any responsibility for the health of patients by assuming a role in contact lenses or refraction, and don't support doing more, but want to be paid as a professional. FOR WHAT, measuring a PD and seg height? We don't even support education as an industry. Do people with a background receive higher salaries? In my state of NC, they tell me that it doesn't matter what you know as long as you have a license and can SELL (there is that word again). How often have you heard even the leadership in this profession discuss the benefits of apprenticeship training that was done away with many years ago by every other profession. As long as we limit ourselves to fitting and dispensing spectacles only, that are perceived to do NO harm and are considered a retail item by many, we will be unsuccessful. Contact lenses can actually cause harm if improperly fitted and were the basis for many licenses being issued. As we continue to lose our rights to fit them, so will go our license. And quite frankly, most so called Opticians today have such poor training that I'm not even sure what they do deserves a license, unless it is a sales persons license. Ask most what Prentice's Rule is and they cannot answer you. I talked to to a fellow who failed the NC board 6 times and was complaining that he could make a great pair of glasses and deserved to pass on that basis. We don't license people to make a great pair of glasses, but to protect the welfare of the public (suppossedly). I have fought for the betterment of this profession for many years and now it is falling apart. Education is the key to our survival and it is not too late. But losing schools is not the answer. Sorry to be on my soapbox, but I am passionate about the issues of education and training for Opticians.

[hcjilson]

I agree with Warren, however apprenticeship programs are not easily "abolished".I can only speak for MA but I'm reasonably sure it applies in all licensed states, save Rhode Island.

Apprenticeship, as a vehicle to obtain licensure, appears in the law creating the licensing board. In order to abolish it, you have to change the law. In order to change the law you have to open the door via hearings, to anyone who wants to challenge licensing.Verrrrrry risky!

Speaking for MA, when the board of registration burps, the attorney's representing Pearle, Lenscrafters, et al, can tell you what we had for lunch!While it may not be in their best interest to abolish licensing.....you can bet your last dime they will want to keep apprenticeship, and put a lot of effort into lobbying the legislature to keep it.

It is interesting to note that Rhode Island has sucessfully abolished apprenticeship while keeping licensing protected.I am in the process of contacting the individual responsible for that effort to see if he will put his experiences down so I can share them at the NCORB meeting in Atlanta.Perhaps we can tear a page out of their book,however my call hasn't been returned as yet.More may follow.

While we (as a profession) are saddened by the demise of optical schools, I feel we have not done enough to support them.Their [schools] recruitment practices have been lacking from what I've seen.Thats where we can make an impact.Almost every local high school has "career days" at which business people take one or more students into their business for a day and show them what its like.Thats where your optical students are coming from, why not get to them first? Recruitment is a subject of its own for another thread but its of utmost importance for maintaining enrollment.

Sorry to run on so long.

Harry J

[wmcdonald]

I agree Harry, it is difficult now. In fact it may be too late. We should have recognized the value of education 20 years ago. There were some of us recommending it and I remember vividly being treated as "the enemy". The leadership who ran things back then also ran most businesses and in their short-sightedness felt that they might have to pay more if their Opticians were actually "educated", so they were reluctant to rock the profitable boat. We have some remnants of that remaining even today. But we must recognize that change is necessary. We can take a chance and fight for the right to advance or die the slow death we have been experienceing in recent years. Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!

[hcjilson]

Thats why I'm trying to get the blueprints from RI!
hj

[wmcdonald]

YOU ARE THE MAN! The blueprints you will find will be simple, have the right political connections and sing from the same page on the hymnal (that is Southern euphamism for all you unfortunate not born in the South meaning we must all agree on the salient points). Let me know if I can help my friend.

[Laurie]

I am very sad for Owens, and my friend, Dawn Defalco (Instructor at Owens).

However, opticianry education is not dead in the water.

Call me an eternal optimist, or polyanna, but I know that our profession even seems to be on the way up in some spots around the country.


Please hang in there, and see what we can do to help Harry J. and states trying to get distance learning and licensure off the ground. We just graduated our first class of Internet opticianry students, and they are doing remarkably on the ABO, NCLE so far (grades coming in as we speak!). I will let you know the results of the Florida boards (both written and hands on) after September.

To Kevin: This is NOT a good thing for us by any stretch of the imagination. We will not end up with fewer "opticians", just fewer educated dispensers.

: (

Laurie

[bblack]

In Ohio if you work for an OD or Ophthalmologist you are not required to have a license to dispense. If doctor is on vacation or decides to take a day off the front desk staff or unlicensed employee can dispense or sell eyewear to the public. If a licensed optician owns the business you must be on the premises for a non-licensed trainee to dispense eyewear. As long as this concession to the doctors is in place the optician's license is not going to thoroughly protect the public. This does though make it harder for the independent optician to compete. This policy also created an incentive for doctors to hire untrained employees. Many doctors do not encourage licensing since this will only increase their payroll expense. This perspective is myopic on the part of the doctor since a quality optician will help grow your business. I believe this exemption for doctors is one of the main reasons in Ohio that opticianry is on the decline.

God bless free enterprise

Bill

[CuriousCat]

As an Essilor product (Varilux) wearer, promoter and dispenser, I am disappointed that they couldn't find any "deserving" Opticianry schools to reward. See the Industry News forum for more information.

[mjh]

I went searching for this on purpose. Similar talk from a long time ago about licensing, optical education dying off, and that type of thing. Now, in 2003, we are still discussing these things, meaning that if anything was accomplished from all of the chatter from back then, then I don't know what it is. I bring this up so that those of us interested in opticianry's future can learn what has worked from past discussions, and what hasn't. Michael.

[paw]

Here's the view from the optometric side of the coin:

I am from Ohio.

The Dr has never liked hiring "off the street" and having to train his employees from scratch. He would love to hire a person already trained, if not experienced. But where to find such a person, especially when we are located in a rural area? Fortunately for Toledo, but unfortunately for all other areas of Ohio, the graduates of the Owens program tend to stay in that area, or at least they don't tend to move to our small town.

The Dr dislikes hiring off the street so much that, about a year or so ago, he wrote letters to many of Ohio's community colleges asking them to consider implementing an opticianry program and explained the positive market outlook and the need for trained, experienced people to fill the market need. There was a lukewarm, at best, response.

Also, I would like to ask, would a licensed optician consider himself to be "underemployed" if he worked in an office that didn't have an in-office lab?

[Excel-Lentes]

Hi paw.

I am curious. What would the starting pay be for an optician "off the street" vs. an optician that had a formal education at a community college?

Optician programs won't exist unless there is a market for educated opticians. I have talked with some people that were looking to hire experienced, educated opticians but were only willing to pay the salary of a department store clerk. I don't know of anyone that would spend two years learning the wonderful art and science of opticianry only to achieve an income that one could barely live on.:(

-Brendan

[paw]

The Dr pays $6.00/hr to start, and increases that at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year as training and experience increase. He makes no apologies for starting them (including me) low because they know NOTHING upon hiring, and he uses his personal time to train them personally. The employee knows that with initiative and effort on her part, she can develop a nice career. This system seems to work for us. We have found 3 good employees, other than me, this way.

I don't know what a graduate of Owens would request as a starting salary.

The Dr did interview an experienced optician once, but his salary request was $40,000. That would pretty much blow the budget. Also, the optician was looking for a place with an in-house lab, which we don't have. So it wouldn't have been a good fit for either side.

[paw]

The Dr pays $6.00/hr to start, and increases that at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year as training and experience increase. He makes no apologies for starting them (including me) low because they know NOTHING upon hiring, and he uses his personal time to train them personally. The employee knows that with initiative and effort on her part, she can develop a nice career. This system seems to work for us. We have found 3 good employees, other than me, this way.

I don't know what a graduate of Owens would request as a starting salary.

The Dr did interview an experienced optician once, but his salary request was $40,000. That would pretty much blow the budget. Also, the optician was looking for a place with an in-house lab, which we don't have. So it wouldn't have been a good fit for either side.

[CuriousCat]

A college-educated, licensed Optician who has spent thousands of dollars on an education working for $6.00 an hour! Did I misunderstand something? What does a college-educated, licensed Optometrist make as a starting salary?