Four new officers were elected to the American Optometric Student Association Executive Council at the January 2015 Board of Trustees meeting in San Francisco:
President-elect Hunter Chapman is a third-year student at Southern College of Optometry. Prior to his election, Chapman served as AOSA trustee, AOA-PAC national liaison, and director of school relations for OptometryStudents.com. He is a Monroe, LA. native who enjoys music, movies, running, and the outdoors.
Vice President-elect Alex Conley is a third-year student at the InterAmerican University School of Optometry in Puerto Rico who served as AOSA trustee before his election as vice president. He is a graduate of Wichita State University, holding a B.A. in biology with an emphasis in biomedical studies, and a minor in Chemistry. Conley is a Wichita, KS native who enjoys sports and the outdoors.
Secretary-elect Nicole Ethridge is a third-year student at the University of Missouri-St. Louis School of Optometry. She served as UMSL’s trustee before being elected as Secretary. In addition, she is serving as AOSA-OptometryStudents.com liaison. She holds a B.S. in molecular and cellular biology as well as a B.A. in English from the University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign. She is a Chicago native who enjoys traveling. Nicole has a particular interest in legislative issues impacting the field of optometry.
Treasurer Jordyn Barnwell is a third-year student at Northeastern State University- Oklahoma College of Optometry, where she also attended as an undergrad. She holds a B.S. in Cellular Biology and served as NSU’s Trustee prior to her election as Treasurer. Jordyn has been very active in Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority, where she served as president and treasurer. She is a native of Jay, OK and enjoys music and cooking.
Terms begin for the new officers in March. Current AOSA President Devin Sasser, a fourth-year student at UM-St. Louis noted, “Being a part of this organization has easily been the most gratifying moment of my optometry school career. It’s going to be a hard one to beat. So very happy for Hunter Chapman and the newly elected Executive Council! Saying goodbye is tough, but the organization could not be in better hands.”
President-elect Chapman stated, “I am truly humbled to have the chance to serve and represent our profession and optometry students – over 6,500 high achieving students for which I have a tremendous amount of respect. Thank you to President Sasser and his outgoing executive council for continuing to move our profession forward. I am honored to rededicate myself to the AOSA and its mission this coming year.”
For more information about AOSA, visit www.theaosa.org.