Unlike many college students who spend
their summers and free time in part-time jobs that range from sales clerk to lifeguard, Nutrition Science junior and pre-med student Josh Zaffos spends his time outside of the classroom removing eyes and performing corneal excisions.

Zaffos’ work began during spring break last year when he got an externship with the Georgia Eye Bank in Atlanta. During that program, he learned how donor eyes can be used for corneal transplants and research. He also became qualified under state and federal laws to perform enucleations (eye removals) and corneal excisions.

Zaffos found his work last year so interesting that he is still on-call as an enucleator for the Eye Bank and is, in fact, the youngest enucleator in the state. To fulfill that role, Zaffos must be on call 24 hours a day and has to travel all around the state to morgues, hospitals, funeral homes and – one time – to Georgia Bureau of Investigation headquarters.

Since he started his work in March 2005, Zaffos has performed 56 enucleations. While he typically performed nearly a dozen procedures each month during the summer, he has averaged five each month during this academic year.

“A few of my friends think I’m pretty weird. They call me ‘eye-snatcher’ and stuff like that. But the majority of my friends view what I do as really cool and cast a greater amount of respect over me for it,” Zaffos said. “It really is work that goes for a good cause. And, it allows me to have experiences now that most of my pre-med classmates won’t get to have until they are in their residencies.”

Though he originally intended to use his nutrition science degree to aid him in becoming a cardiologist, Zaffos finds his work with the Eye Bank so interesting that he’s now considering a career in opthamology.

But collecting corneas isn’t the only interest Zaffos has. In fact, a former soccer and basketball player, Zaffos remains active in sports and ran in the 2005 Peachtree Road Race. He is also interested in one day studying abroad and eventually in teaching in either a medical or college setting.

Another interest Zaffos has is in FACS leadership. For the past year, he has served as a college ambassador – a position he views as a way to give back to a college that has given him so much.

“The thing I’m most thankful for is the way people are treated in this college, across the board – from students to staff to faculty. It’s all about respecting people. The people here really want to get to know you,” Zaffos said.

While he has several more nutrition science classes to take before he graduates in May 2007, Zaffos’ favorite FACS class so far was Rebecca Mullis’ Introduction to Nutrition Science.

“Dr. Mullis is a great person and she really cared about the students and the material. I loved it – everything about it,” Zaffos said. “It was so interesting to hear about nutrition and facts about dieting – it was reassuring to me that I am planning on doing the right thing with my life.”

While he looks forward to his remaining coursework that will lead him into the medical profession, Zaffos believes it’s more than the classes at FACS that are helping build him professionally and personally along the way – it’s the people, too.

“This college has taught me that it doesn’t matter what you do in life, it’s about taking it to the next level and making a difference,” Zaffos said. “That mentality is prevalent in this college. I’ve learned so much and I can take it with me whatever I do or wherever I go and really help my community as a result.”