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Great day to be a bear!

The University expects the first class to be admitted in the Fall of 2016.

The School would be just the 22nd Optometry College in the United States. UPIKE continues to grow first the Medical School, then the Coleman College of Business offering an MBA Program, and now the Optometry School. Hopefully the Education Masters Program will be added soon and I am sure there are other plans in place.

PIKEVILLE, Ky. (WSAZ) -- The University of Pikeville made a major announcement Wednesday. The school will soon be the home to UPike Kentucky College of Optometry.
In a press conference Wednesday morning, UPike President James Hurley made the announcement, saying there is a "huge unmet need, not only in Central Appalachia, but the entire southeast US."
UPike will be home to the 22nd college of Optometry in the country. There are currently no colleges of Optometry in Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia or Mississippi.
They hope to welcome their first class of students in 2016.
According to Hurley, 25% of Kentucky counties do not have a practicing Optometrist. He also says 10% don't have enough Optometrists to meet the need.
There will be 60 students per class, with a total of 240 new students at UPike.
Board Chair Terry Dodson said that come 2016, they will have more doctors enrolled at UPike than the total number of students that were enrolled in 1985.
Hurley says they will offer a 4-year Post Baccalaureate Professional Degree.
They will also build a new 90,000 square foot facility, which Hurley says will also them to expand the nursing program and either double or triple the degrees. He also says they will be able to expand health sciences and develop programs in occupational therapy and physical therapy.
Governor Steve Beshear announced Wednesday that they have been able to get $1.5 million through ARC grants to help kickstart the new program, which he says will help boost the quality of life in the region.
Gov. Beshear says when President Hurley first started at UPike, one of his goals was academic excellence and this puts him on that path. "The opening of this College of Optometry will be a significant step in that direction, adding a critical degree program to the university's repertoire, but it will also, in a much broader sense, help the commonwealth at large, to achieve its goals," Beshear said.
The new school is expected to bring in $8.5 million in tuition revenue and have a $6 million economic impact on the county.
Gov. Beshear and Congressman Hal Rogers both say the opening of the College of Optometry helps kick off the SOAR program, a program intended to boost economy in Kentucky after mine shut downs and jobs losses.
Senator Ray Jones says he hopes this new program will help keep doctors in the area. "We often hear people talk about the "brain drain" in Eastern Kentucky. Our best and brightest leave. Well, the University of Pikeville is committed to stopping the brain drain in Central Appalachia," Sen. Jones said.
Jones also says this is not only important to Kentucky, but also surrounding states, including West Virginia. He says he has visited with West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin and US Senators from West Virginia to discuss the impact in will also have on the mountain state. "The key to the future in this region is education," Sen. Jones said.
President Hurley says one thing that sets Kentucky apart from other states is that is only one of two (Oklahoma) that allows laser as a scope of practice.
"Every student in the United States will want to train here. Other colleges of Optometry across the country are concerned because the University of Pikeville becomes the leader in the applicants because all Optometrists want to learn how to use the scope of practice in their practice," Hurley said.

http://www.wsaz.com/home/headlines/UPike...83291.html