Honored Fellow … Is It Right for You?
Honored Fellow is an OAA member designation, a designation beyond a regular membership. Any individual member or member of an OAA State Association is invited to become an Honored Fellow. In addition to enjoying all of the many benefits that come with standard OAA membership, Honored Fellows set themselves apart with regard to commitment, status and additional opportunities:
- HFOAA members are eligible to vote during the annual OAA Membership Meeting, influencing the direction of the organization and, by extension, the industry at large.
- Only HFOAA members are eligible to seek office on the OAA Board of Directors and the Vision of Hope Foundation’s Board of Directors.
- HFOAA members have exclusive permission to use the designation 'HFOAA' following your name (e.g.: 'John Smith, HFOAA').
- HFOAA members receive a certificate for public display, stating your credential as an Honored Fellow.
- HFOAA members receive an official store window decal indicating that an OAA Honored Fellow works in the dispensary or lab
Dibby Bartlett ABO, HFOAA
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Branding and Marketing
Chair: Shirley Earley
Members: Sue Shire, Donna Hatch, Moses Nawlo, Johnna Dukes, Dibby Bartlett, Michelle Self, Melissa Rasband
Mission: The mission of the branding committee is to identify to the consumer and industry “Who Opticians Are” and “What We Do". We understand that it is imperative to the profession that the consumer understands the value of the optician.
Projects: The Branding committee has had many projects to date; videos, billboards, apparel, taglines and more. Currently, the committee is working on marketing and launching a program for unlicensed states that will encourage certification and help with mobility. (details to come soon!!)
"Without the commitment to Brand the American Optician, it's questionable whether our profession will exist in the future." Shirley Earley
United States of Opticianry
Chair: John Bruening
Members: Tina Luka, Lisa Bourque, Tiffany Rosell, Mustafa Asif, Dibby Bartlett
Mission: The goal of the United States of Opticianry (USO) is to strengthen the communication between the member state associations and the OAA and use that interaction to become a resource for each state and the OAA. This committee will help to open an exchange of ideas and assist the OAA in finding out how we can address issues facing the states. This will give us a good starting point to be proactive in becoming a more valuable resource for our members.
Projects: The first project we are working on is connecting with each member state and assigning a 'delegate' to represent their state association at a bimonthly round table discussion with OAA. Here we get a chance to understand the makeup of each state association and how the OAA can best serve them.
We are also holding bimonthly forums for member states in which we tackle specific issues facing state societies, such as Membership, Continuing Education seminars and How to Maintain A Healthy Treasury.
"Without solid-state associations helping to promote and advocate for opticians, our profession will become nothing more than another trade" John Bruening
