Offering over 100 programs of study, HFC is a place filled with endless possibilities for students starting their college careers. Known for its nursing and culinary arts programs, the college also offers majors as diverse as criminal justice, graphic design, and ophthalmology.

The only program of its kind in Michigan, the Ophthalmic Technician program prepares students interested in vision care by incorporating lectures as well as hands-on experience.

Currently, there are 25 students enrolled in the program, with 12 in their first year and 13 in their second said Michelle Nowicki, the clinical coordinator of the course. She mostly works with second-year students, who have gained experience from the previous year to begin working in an ophthalmology clinic. Nowicki’s responsibilities include assisting students in finding a clinic and recruiting health care services who are willing to train aspiring technicians.

“We work with 25 clinics at the moment” she said. “Some are right here in Dearborn and others are as far as Sterling Heights.”

A few of the clinics that the OTP program partners with includes Henry Ford Hospital and Kresge Eye Institute, both of which are located in Detroit.

Jodie Miller currently has a clinical at Kresge, where she works twice a week. The second-year student joined the program after deciding she wanted to pursue a career in healthcare without dealing with all the “blood and guts” of becoming a doctor.

"I like looking into a patient’s eyes” Miller said. “It’s really cool.”

For first-year students, learning takes place in a traditional classroom setting. This is where they will be introduced to equipment they will be handling on the job said program director Kathy Campbell. These items include using a phoropter; an instrument technicians use to test the lenses in each eye, and a slit lamp; a microscope that shines a light from the front to the back of a person’s eyes. (www.eyeglassguide.com)

The first year also requires lots of studying said Rahul Modi, who just entered the program this semester. But he manages to get by with the help of Campbell and his classmates.

“We’re like a small family” he said.

The curriculum is a refresher for Jane Zmarzly, who has worked in eye vision for the past 10 years. Never going to school for ophthalmology before, the first year student wants to receive her associate’s degree. Despite being in the career for a decade, Zmarzly continues to like doing what she does.

“When you’re a technician, the people don’t get sick” she said. “And there are more set hours than if you were to be a doctor. You could work 8am-4pm or 9m-5pm. That’s perfect when you want to raise a family.”

Joining the program in August as the OPT program’s third director, Campbell is thrilled to be working at HFC, saying “it’s a great place to learn.”

Prior to working at the college, Campbell was an ophthalmic technician and surgical assistant for 35 years.

A unique attribute to the program is that unlike other health fields, the OTP program has no waitlist, so students are able to jump right into preparing for their career. But Campbell wishes the course could gain more recognition within the student body like the nursing program.

“Both programs have equal importance, just in a different way” said Campbell.