ÐÓ°É´«Ã½

Against a backdrop of elegant decor featuring shades of blue and gold illuminated with twinkling lights, all the stars of the third-year Doctor of Optometry class sparkled brightly at the annual Eyeball gala for the Pennsylvania College of Optometry, Salus at Drexel University. 

“Starry Night,” the theme of this year’s event, was held Jan. 18, 2025, at Falls Manor Events and Catering in Bristol, Pennsylvania and attracted approximately 160 students and faculty members.  

“The Eyeball gala was a magical evening and an incredible way for our class to come together one last time before we take our national boards examination and embark on externship rotations,” said MacKenzie Lewis ‘26OD, who along with Jarod Detrick ‘26OD spearheaded the planning along with the Eyeball student committee. “Seeing everyone enjoy themselves and celebrating our shared journey made all of the hard work and challenges worthwhile.” 

The Eyeball is a cherished tradition for third-year Doctor of Optometry students to celebrate academic and clinical achievements, honor milestones and recognize the hard work and dedication they have completed to date. It serves as a "last hoorah" before the students take the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO) exam in March and disperse across the country and world for their fourth-year clinical externship rotations. 

Official planning began in August 2024, but brainstorming for the event began last spring. One of the biggest challenges for this year’s planners was balancing planning the event with their busy didactic and clinical schedules.  

Additionally, this was the first large event since the first step of the merger between Salus and Drexel universities, which introduced an extra layer of complexity to navigating the unfamiliar Drexel policies and procedures of planning such an event and securing vendors and the venue. 

Since the school does not provide funds specifically for the gala, students had to fundraise all the money to host the event, which required significant effort to create a budget and plan fundraising activities to ensure the class could cover all expenses. 

“Seeing everyone enjoy themselves and celebrating our shared journey made all of the hard work and challenges worthwhile,” said Lewis. 

The evening was filled with memories and laughter as students took a well-deserved break from their studies to celebrate their accomplishments. A highlight of the event was a group of class superlatives and a brief video featuring words of encouragement from mentors.  

“The Class of 2026 has certainly faced its share of challenges during our time here, but it was heartwarming to set all that aside and focus on us and how much we’ve grown and achieved together,” said Detrick, who added that the student planners received valuable guidance from four faulty members, the Office of Student Affairs and Monae Kelsey, director of Student Engagement and assistant director of Admissions. “We hope all class members who attended the gala had a wonderful time and will cherish the memories for years to come."