The NCSOC had its beginnings in Boston during the AOA Congress of 1965.  Representatives from a five-state area developed the idea for a regional education conference.   The states represented were Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota and Minnesota.   The major purpose of the conference was to provide quality education for ODs of the area.  Some of the leaders of the concept were Drs. Shannon and Hasler of Wisconsin, Dr. Hottel of Iowa, Dr. Batten of South Dakota, and Drs. Akre and McKee of Minnesota.

The first conference was held in January 1966 and hosted 169 ODs at the session.  In an early planning session, it was stated “first class people deserve first class treatment and, since Optometrists are first class people, everything we do shall be done to make this a first class experience.”  From that day forward, officials strove to meet that challenge. 

The leadership of NCSOC was provided by the president and president-elect of each state, plus other officers and committee members.  Later, it was deemed important that the state executive also be a part of the dialog. Volunteer leadership to accomplish the goals of the NCSOC has always been important.

In 2009, the last regional educational conference was held and the cabinet embarked into a long range plan for NCSOC to address its mission and objectives related to Political Awareness, Information Sharing and Education. NCSOC developed a new business plan for member states to share information about non-covered services, legislative efforts and leadership development. 

Over the year, NCSOC grew from the original five states to include Michigan, Nebraska, Illinois, Kansas and Missouri.  Currently, the member states are Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin.

North Central States Optometric Council
3901 Normal Blvd., Ste. 100
Lincoln, Nebraska 68506

Phone: (402) 476-3852 (402) 476-3852 E-mail: ncsoc@assocoffice.net