Myers Lecture Series

The Jeffrey and Joyce Myers Lecture Series was established through a gift from Dr. Jeffrey and Mrs. Joyce Myers. Their intent is to sponsor one lecture per academic year during the autumn semester featuring a guest speaker from outside The Ohio State University with special expertise across the domains of optometry and vision science. Dr. Myers, a graduate of The Ohio State University College of Optometry Class of 1984, is a private-practice optometrist in central Ohio.

“Contact Lenses: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow”

December 6, 2023 at 5:30 p.m in Hamilton 080 at 338 W 10th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210

Dr. Edward Bennett

Edward S. Bennett, OD, MSEd

Dr. Ed Bennett is currently Professor Emeritus at the University of Missouri-St. Louis College of Optometry. He is President and Executive Director of the Gas Permeable (GP) Lens Institute and is the Clinical Features Editor for Contact Lens Spectrum. He was inducted into the National Optometry Hall of Fame in June, 2022 and was elected as an inaugural member of the Academy of Optometry Hall of Fame that same year. He is a past Chair of the Contact Lens and Cornea Section Council of the American Optometric Association (AOA) and is a Diplomate and a past Chair of the Cornea, Contact Lenses and Refractive Technologies Section of the American Academy of Optometry. He is a past Chair of the Association of Optometric Contact Lens Educators and past President of the MD-OD Contact Lens Foundation of St. Louis. He is also a Fellow in the Scleral Lens Education Society and a Distinguished Fellow in the National Academies of Practice. He has authored over 200 publications including 14 texts and lectured at over 500 scientific and continuing education symposia. He is a recipient of both the Dr. Josef Dallos Award and Leonardo da Vinci Award (CLMA), The Distinguished Service Award (GPLI), the Achievement Award, the Frank Fontana Award, and the Legends Award (AOA Contact Lens and Cornea Section), the Dr. Leonard Bronstein Memorial Award, the Global Specialty Lens Symposium Award of Excellence, the Annual Kevin Tuohy Memorial Award (CLSA), the University of Houston College of Optometry Award for Distinguished Research on the Cornea and Contact Lenses, the University of Missouri-St. Louis Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, the American Optometric Foundation Michael G. Harris Award for Excellence in Optometric Education, the National Keratoconus Foundation Ambassador Award, The Dr. R.A. Koetting Memorial Award from the St. Louis Optometric Society, and the 2nd annual Distinguished Alumni Award from the Indiana University School of Optometry. He was named one of the 50 most influential optometrists in America by Optometric Management and was honored as one of the 30 most influential in contact lenses in the last 30 years by Contact Lens Spectrum. He is a past member of the Education Committee of the Global Specialty Lens Symposium, an Editorial Review Board member for Review of Optometry, and an Editorial Board Member for Review of Cornea and Contact Lenses.

“A Look at the Profession of Optometry: Some Pathways, Some Perspectives”


November 16, 2022 at 5:30 p.m. in Fry 33 at 338 W 10th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210

Dr. Linda Casser

Linda Casser, OD, FAAO, FNAP

Dr. Casser grew up in Wisconsin and completed pre-optometry studies at Northwestern University. Following graduation in 1978 from the Indiana University School of Optometry, Dr. Casser completed a two-year primary care optometry residency program at the Wilson Health Center in Rochester, NY. Dr. Casser served for four years as Chief of Primary Care Module 4 at The Eye Institute and Assistant Professor at the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO). She was a faculty member at the Indiana University School of Optometry for thirteen years, achieving the rank of Associate Professor with tenure and serving as the Director of the Indianapolis Eye Care Center. Dr. Casser joined the Pacific University College of Optometry in 1997, serving as Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Professor through 2005. In January 2006, Dr. Casser joined the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO) as Associate Executive Director of Clinical Examinations. From January 2009 through 2013, Dr. Casser served as Dean, Salus University Pennsylvania College of Optometry, and subsequently Interim Associate Dean for the Practice of Optometric Medicine until August 2014. In 2015, she served as Interim Director of Education for the Physician Assistant Program, Salus University College of Health Sciences. Before being granted Professor Emerita status in 2022, Dr. Casser served as a tenured Professor in PCO and Coordinator of Interprofessional Education for Salus University in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Casser has provided nearly 400 presentations in 39 states and 8 countries comprised of continuing education lectures and workshops on the diagnosis, treatment, and management of anterior segment ocular disease. She is primary author of the textbook Atlas of Primary Eyecare Procedures, 2nd Edition (McGraw-Hill, 1997) as well as the eBook version of the Atlas (Ridgevue Publishing, 2017). Dr. Casser has authored manuscripts and textbook chapters on primary optometric care as well as publications and presentations pertaining to interprofessional education and collaborative practice.

Dr. Casser is a past president of the Indiana Optometric Association, has served on committees of the American Optometric Association, and is a past chair of the Primary Care Diplomate Program for the American Academy of Optometry, from which she received the 2004 Founder’s Award. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the National Board of Examiners in Optometry from 1998 - 2005 and served as its 2001 - 2002 President. Dr. Casser also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Oregon Optometric Physicians Association, a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO), the Faculty Representative to the Salus University Board of Trustees, Chair of the ASCO Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice Committee, a member of the Legislative Affairs and Chair of the State / National Education Committees for the Pennsylvania Optometric Association (POA), an assessment team member for the Optometry Council of Australia and New Zealand (OCANZ), and a Public Member of the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) of the American Dental Association. She currently serves as a Consultant to the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education (ACOE), a member of the Nominating Committee for the American Academy of Optometry, and a member of the ASCO Awards and Resolutions Committee.

Dr. Casser was named the 1995 "Optometrist of the Year" by the Indiana Optometric Association, the 1997 "Optometrist of the Year" by the American Optometric Association, and a 2000 Most Influential Optometrist by Review of Optometry. Dr. Casser received the Foley House Award from the Indiana University School of Optometry in 2006. In 2012, Dr. Casser received the inaugural Distinguished Residency Alumni Award from the SUNY State College of Optometry and the Presidential Service to Students Award from the Salus University Student Council. In 2013, Dr. Casser was featured in Optometric Management’s “O.D. Scene Key Opinion Leaders: Schools of Optometry.” She was the invited 2014 Keynote Presenter at the Annual Meeting of the National Association of Veterans Administration Optometrists (NAVAO) and the 2022 ASCO Summer Institute for Faculty Development. In 2017 she received the Dr. Lester Caplan Honorary Lecture Award from ASCO, and in 2020 she received the Dr. Jerry Davidoff Memorial Award from the Pennsylvania Optometric Association for significant contributions to the advancement of optometry. In 2021, Dr. Casser was a recipient of ASCO’s Dr. Jack Bennett Innovation in Optometric Education Award.

Video Links:

“A Seat at the Table: A Career in Public Health Optometry”


December 8, 2021 at 6:00 p.m. ET via Zoom

Dr. John Carroll Whitener

About John Carroll Whitener, OD, MPH

Dr. Whitener graduated from Illinois College of Optometry and received a masters degree in public health at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He provided clinical care in the Army Reserve at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for 15 years and served as an optometrist in Viet Nam and during Operation Dessert Storm.

Dr. Whitener was the Assistant Director, Federal Relations, American Optometric Association (AOA), where he was responsible for the Association’s public health programs. He staffed the Association’s Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Committee, which had oversight for all public health programs.

He was instrumental in creating and directed the AOA’s Council on Research for 20 years. Under his management, the Council sponsored the Summer Research Institute, which successfully trained clinicians from schools and colleges of optometry to conduct clinical trial research.

In 2008 he became the founding Chief of Staff of the National Commission on Vision and Health (NCVH). The commission was created to improve the nation’s visual health by collaborating with science and health policy experts to ensure informed analysis and policy recommendations in order to prevent blindness, improve vision and eliminate vision health disparities. Commission members represent the broadest array of health and policy professionals with expertise in health care. During his tenure the Commission worked with key stakeholders in health policy in federal agencies and national health associations with a focus on integrating visual health programs into public health programs. The Commission worked to reduce barriers and improve access to eye care by high-risk populations especially in Community Health Centers. He retired from the NCVH in December 2011.

Dr. Whitener worked for many years for the inclusion of eye and vision objectives in the U.S. Department of Health’s Healthy People initiative. For the first time, Healthy People 2010, included 10 vision objectives for the nation. He was the Association’s lead staff person launching activities addressing Healthy People 2010 with a program, “Healthy Eyes Healthy People.” In October 2002, he was also successful in creating a Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the AOA to promote the goals and objectives of Healthy People. AOA was only one of seven organizations, which were granted a Memorandum of Understanding by DHHS. This memorandum was renewed in 2006 in recognition of significant ophthalmic industry funding of state and local collaborative community projects to help meet the goals of Health People.

Dr. Whitener has been an active participant in the American Public Health Association (APHA) serving on the Nominating Committee, Chair of the Vision Care Section (VCS) , Section Councilor, Governing Council, Awards Chair and as member of the Action Board. In 2002, he received the prestigious “Distinguished Service Award” from APHA’s Vision Care Section. In 2010 he received the VCS Outstanding Scientific Project Award. He also has served as the Vice President of the Metropolitan Washington Public Health Association. He was instrumental in creating a Memorandum of Understanding between the American Public Health Association and the American Optometric Association to improve access of eye care services and reduce visual health disparities.

He was actively involved in local public health activities in Arlington County, VA. In 1986, the county manager appointed him to a special AIDS Task Force. This task force produced a long range plan to address AIDS education and services within the county. He was instrumental in helping create an AIDS education curriculum for the Arlington school system, which included lesson plans for kindergarten through twelfth grade. He was chair of the Advisory Board of the Whitman Walker Clinic of Northern Virginia, which serves HIV and AIDS patients. He was also appointed by Arlington County to the Program Area Committee to evaluate the public health programs of the Arlington Department of Human Services.

In 2008 in recognition of his contributions to public health and optometry, he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Science in Optometry by the Illinois College of Optometry.

He was awarded the Koch medal by the American Academy of Optometry for his work to bring together various health organizations in collaborative efforts to improve the public’s health.

In 2011, in recognition of his significant and enduring contributions to health practice, the Council of the National Academies of Practice designated him a distinguished practitioner and member of the National Academies of Practice in Optometry.

He has served on federal and public national advisory committees including the National Heart Lung and Blood’s National High Blood Pressure Coordinating Committee, the National Center for Health Statistics’ National Hispanic Survey, and the National Eye Institute’s National Eye Health Education Program. From its inception in 1986 until 2009, he was a member of the Harvard School of Public Health’s Advisory Board for the Professionals Follow-Up Study.

Dr. Whitener was adjunct faculty for the Masters in Public Health program at Salus University where he also served on the Advisory Board of the College of Health Science. He has authored numerous articles and chapters in textbooks, including co-editor of the 2010 online textbook, Optometric Care Within the Public Health Community. He received the Optometry Journal of the American Optometric Association Editor’s Commendation Award for co-authoring “ The Role of community health centers in responding to disparities in visual health.”

He was one of the first group of optometrists sent to Vietnam where he established an optometry clinic in the base camp of the 101st Airborne Division. He also served during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm. Lt. Col. Whitener retired from the Army Reserve after 23 years of service. Upon his move to Asheville, North Carolina, he continued his involvement in public health. In 2009 he was appointed to the Buncombe County Board of Health where in 2012 he became Vice-chair of the Board and served on the Board for five years. He is on the Executive Board for First Congregational United Church of Christ Asheville.

In May 2013 he was recognized for his lifetime contributions to improve access to vision care and public health receiving an honorary degree and delivered the commencement address at New England College of Optometry, Boston.

He has served on the Executive Board of First Congregational United Church of Christ, Asheville, NC, as a member and then Chair and currently is Chair of Personnel.

In 2017 his memoir, Don’t Ask and I Will Tell: Finding Myself in Vietnam, was published. In the book he reflects upon his journal entries during the American War in Vietnam and relates those events to today’s current events. His experiences during the war served as a catalyst for his eventual 34-year career in public health policy in Washington, D.C.

Video Links:

November 4, 2020 at 5:30 p.m. via Zoom

Dr. Edwin Marshall

About Edwin C. Marshall, OD, MS, MPH, FAAO, FNAP

Edwin C. Marshall, OD, MS, MPH, FAAO, FNAP is Professor Emeritus of Optometry in the Indiana University School of Optometry and Professor Emeritus of Public Health in the Indiana University Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health and the Indiana University School of Public Health – Bloomington. Prior to retiring from Indiana University in 2013, Dr. Marshall was the Indiana University Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs. Before being named an IU Vice President in 2007, he was the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Student Administration at the IU School of Optometry. 

Dr. Marshall has served as chair of the National Commission on Vision and Health, chair of the Executive Board and vice president (USA) of the American Public Health Association, and chair of The Nation’s Health Editorial Advisory Committee. He is a past president of the National Optometric Association, the Indiana Optometric Association, and the Indiana Public Health Association. He also served as a United States Public Health Service Primary Care Policy Fellow and as a member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Committee on Public Health Approaches to Reduce Vision Impairment and Promote Eye Health and the National Eye Health Education Program Planning Committee of the National Eye Institute.

Dr. Marshall is a Distinguished Practitioner and Fellow of the National Academies of Practice and a Diplomate in Public Health and Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry. He is a recipient of the Tony and Mary Hulman Health Achievement Award in Public Health and Preventive Medicine from the Indiana Public Health Foundation, the Indiana State Health Commissioner Award for Excellence in Public Health, the Distinguished Service Award from the Vision Care Section of the American Public Health Association, the Distinguished Hoosier Award from the Office of the Governor, the Carel C. Koch Memorial Medal from the American Academy of Optometry, the Person of Vision Award from Prevent Blindness Indiana, and the William “Bill” Mays Minority Health Titan Award from the Indiana Minority Health Coalition.

Dr. Marshall was named the Indiana Optometrist of the Year (2006) by the Indiana Optometric Association and the National Optometrist of the Year by both the National Optometric Association (1976) and the American Optometric Association (2007). In 2009 he was inducted into the National Optometry Hall of Fame. In 2017 the Indiana Optometric Association honored Dr. Marshall with the Indiana Optometry Lifetime Achievement Award.

Indiana University has honored Dr. Marshall with the President’s Medal for Excellence, the School of Public Health-Bloomington Founding Dean’s Medallion for meritorious contributions to public health, and the Bicentennial Medal. In 2019 he was honored with the Indiana University Distinguished Alumni Service Award.

Video Links:

Optometry in 3 Dimensions (and the rise and fall of a contact lens modality)


September 25, 2019 at 5:30 p.m. in Fry 22 at 338 W 10th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210

Dr. Peter Bergenske currently resides in the Spokane, Washington area.  He had been the Director of Clinical Research and Development at CIBA Vision, then Director of Professional and Clinical Support for Alcon Vision Care, retiring from that position in March of 2014.  Prior to joining Alcon/CIBA Vision he was an associate professor and Director of Contact Lens Services at Pacific University.  Dr. Bergenske practiced for over 20 years in Madison, Wisconsin prior to joining Pacific University. He is a graduate of the University of California, a past chair of the Section on Cornea and Contact Lenses of the American Academy of Optometry and a past president of the American Optometric Foundation.  He is a Topical Editor for Optometry and Vision Science and serves as a director of the Academy’s Fellows Doing Research Special Interest Group.

Video Links:

Observations Relevant to Treatment Strategies for Myopia


September 19, 2018 at 5:30 p.m. in Fry 33 at 338 W 10th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210

Earl L. Smith III, OD, PhD received his OD (1972) and PhD (1978) from the University of Houston. He joined the faculty of the UH College of Optometry in 1978 and during his tenure in the College of Optometry, he has served as the Chair of the Basic Sciences Department and as the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research. He holds the Greeman-Petty Professorship in Vision Development and is currently serving as the Dean of the College of Optometry. His research interests are focused on the optics of the eye; Professor Smith received the Glenn Fry Award and the Prentice Medal from the American Academy of Optometry for his research on the role of vision in regulating refractive development and eye growth. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, an ARVO Fellow (inaugural class), a member of the National Optometry Hall of Fame, a past Member and Chair of NIH NEI’s Central Visual Processing Study Section and a past member of NIH’s National Advisory Eye Council.

Video Links:

Our Immune System: Friend and Foe


September 27, 2017 in Fry 33 at 338 W 10th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210

Louis J. Catania, OD, FAAO, DSc (Hon) is an internationally acclaimed clinical educator, author, and recognized expert in corneal disorders, refractive surgery, and new eye care technologies. Currently, he is associated with Nicolitz Eye Consultants, a multispecialty ophthalmology group in Jacksonville, Florida. He conducts clinical research on evolving eye care technologies and immunology. Dr. Catania has been voted one of the ten most influential optometrists of the 20th century by Review of Optometry; was Primary Care Optometry News’ first Pioneer in Optometry Award; has received Distinguished Service Awards from the Ocular Surface Society and the Optometric Glaucoma Society; and was inducted into the National Optometry Hall of Fame in 2016.

Video Links:

Hyperpermeability, Hyperosmolarity, and Contact Lens “Future Oxyopia”


October 25, 2016 at 5:30 p.m. in Fry 33 at 338 W 10th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210

Lecture by Dr. William Benjamin

William J. “Joe” Benjamin, OD, MS, PhD, is the Director of Advanced Refractive Care at the Alabama Eye & Cataract Center, P.C., located in the Highlands Building, Suite 501, at 1201 11th Avenue South in Birmingham, Alabama; and the President of Material  Performance Assessments,  LLC,  a  corporation  that  became  operational  on October 1, 2014. He is a clinician in contact lens practice and primary eye care and a clinically oriented researcher. His basic research interests include the physiology of the cornea and ocular surface, and are related to his clinical research and practice with prosthetic eye devices such as contact lenses and conjunctival inserts. Dr. Benjamin was the convener (chair) of the contact lens working group of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for 15 years. He is an active member and Secretary of the Z80 Committee on Ophthalmic Products of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the primary editor/author of ANSI Z80.20 and ISO 18369 on contact lenses, former chair of the AOA Commission on Ophthalmic Standards and the AOA Seal of Acceptance Program, editor/author of the text Borish’s Clinical Refraction (now in its 2nd Edition), and an optometric member of the National Academies of Practice. He is the Immediate Past President of the International Society of Contact Lens Specialists and a former council member of the International Society for Contact Lens Research, holds a patent on an improved design for a conjunctival insert, and was a coursemaster of the contact lens series at the UABSO. He received the Dr. Josef Dallos Award from the Contact Lens Manufacturers Association, the Achievement Award from the Contact Lens & Cornea Section of the American Optometric Association, the Frederik William Herschel Medal from the International Society of Contact Lens Specialists, and  the Statesmanship Award from the ISO contact lens working group. He received sponsorship from companies and associations in 13 different countries and 15 different states in the USA, and has given presentations or conducted meetings in 25 countries and 27 states in the USA.

Dr. Benjamin obtained four degrees from the Ohio State University (BS 1977; MS and OD 1979; PhD 1982). In former lives he was Director of the Institute for Contact Lens Research at the University of Houston, tenured Professor of Optometry and Vision Sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Optometry (UABSO), Director of his Eye Physiology & Ocular Prosthetics Laboratory, a Senior Scientist of UAB’s Vision Science Research Center, UABSO’s Director of Clinical Eye Research, interim Chair of the UABSO Department of Optometry, Director of the Professional Program, and Associate Dean of the UABSO. He and his wife, Dr. Patricia Benjamin, now monitor from afar the progress of their son, Daniel, a Materials Engineering graduate of Auburn University currently assigned to the Department of State in the Washington, D.C. area; and daughter-in-law, Jaclyn, a recent graduate in Forensic Science of George Washington University.

Links to video of the lecture:

Implementing NIH Requirements for Rigorous Experimental Design


September 17, 2015

Lecture by Dr. Mae Gordon
 

Dr. Gordon is a professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and Division of Biostatistics at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Dr. Gordon’s experience and expertise includes the development of outcome measures, risk modeling, in-home visual function testing, and the design and conduct of randomized clinical trials and observational studies. She is the Principal Investigator and Director of the Coordinating Center for the Ocular Hypertension Treatment Study (OHTS), a multi-center randomized clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health that definitively confirmed the safety and efficacy of ocular hypotensive medication in preventing glaucoma. Gordon and colleagues were among the first to identify central corneal thickness as a risk factor for the development of glaucoma.

Dr. Gordon, who has a doctoral minor in psychometrics, has developed new outcome measures such as the validated Glaucoma Symptom Questionnaire, a corneal scarring grading system, and the Pediatric Cerebral Palsy Visual Function Questionnaire. Her studies on patient adherence to glaucoma medication using an unobtrusive electronic eye drop monitor are still considered “landmark” studies.

Links to video of the lecture:

My 35-Year Meibomian Gland Odyssey and a New Paradigm


October 6, 2014

Lecture by Dr. Donald R. Korb
 

Donald R. Korb, OD, a trailblazing clinician-scientist best known for his innovative contact lens and dry eye research, is a graduate of the New England College of Optometry and fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, Dr. Korb divides his time between clinical practice and research, with 100 peer-reviewed articles and 50 U.S. patents to his name. He invented the CSI contact lens and the first membrane soft lens, and is co-inventor of Systane Balance, a lipid dry eye product marketed by Alcon, and Soothe XP marketed by Bausch+Lomb.

Dr. Korb has founded five research companies, including TearScience in 2006, dedicated to dry eye diagnosis and treatment where he invented the Korb meibomian gland evaluator; the LipiView, to computerize evaluation of lipid layer thickness; and the LipiFlow, an FDA-approved dry eye treatment.

In addition to being inducted into the Optometry Hall of Fame, Dr. Korb's honors include being a Regents Lecturer at the University of California, Berkeley; receiving the Dr. Donald R. Korb Award presented by the American Optometric Association Contact Lens and Cornea Section; and being awarded two honorary doctorates.

Links to video of the lecture:

Clinical Assessment of Vision and Visual Functionality


October 8th, 2013

Lecture by Dr. Ian Bailey
 

Ian Bailey was trained as an optometrist in Melbourne, Australia. After two years in private practice he travelled to London to gain extra training in contact lenses. There he began his descent into academic life, becoming a research student and graduate instructor for 2 years at The City University, followed by 12 months at Indiana University where he gained an MS degree.

He returned to the University of Melbourne in 1967 as head of the clinic and there he also taught a wide variety of classroom courses. In 1972, unplanned circumstances diverted his research interests from contact lenses to low vision. An impulsive resignation in 1973 led to a year on soft money doing low vision research with a talented new graduate student Jan Lovie. Prompted by a need for more secure employment, in 1976 Bailey took up his current faculty position in the School of Optometry at the University of California Berkeley. His research activities have concentrated on visual optics and visual psychophysics and there has always been a clinical motivation. His diverse contributions include work on measurement of visual acuity, reading performance, contrast sensitivity, measurement of the optical properties of low vision aids, prescribing methods, clinical scaling, orientation and mobility, face recognition, eye movements, glare sensitivity, visual ergonomics and illumination engineering.

Bailey has received many prestigious awards recognizing his contributions to clinical optometry and vision science. These include the Prentice Medal from the American Academy of Optometry, the Pisart Award from Lighthouse International, and an honorary Doctor of Science Degree from the State University of New York.

Links to video of the lecture:

Global Optometry: Making a Difference Growing the Profession


October 30th, 2012

Lecture by Dr. Kovin Naidoo
 

Kovin Naidoo, OD, MPH, graduated from the University of Durban-Westville, South Africa, where he obtained his Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Optometry degrees. He earned a Masters in Public Health degree from Temple University and a Doctorate of Optometry degree from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry. He is currently an Associate Professor of Optometry at the University of KwaZulu Natal in South Africa.

Dr. Naidoo is an academic, a former anti-apartheid activist and political prisoner, a Fulbright Scholar, and an internationally-celebrated public health leader. He was also elected an Ashoka Fellow for his social entrepreneurial efforts in addressing the needs of those less privileged. In recognition of his vast efforts, he was granted the African Optometrist of the Year Award in 2002 and the International Optometrist of the Year Award in 2007.

Dr. Naidoo is a member of the World Council of Optometry Governing Board, the Global Program Director of the International Center for Eye Care Education (ICEE), Head of the African Vision Research Institute (AVRI), Chair of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness in Africa, Chair of the Red Cross Air Mercy Services, and the founder and Chair of the KwaZulu-Natal Eye Care Coalition to establish cataract surgical services in the public sector.

Links to video of the lecture:

Hope for Prevention of Diabetic Retinal Complications: the Journey


October 24th, 2011

Lecture by Dr. Tony Adams
 

Tony Adams, OD, PhD, serves as editor-in-chief of Optometry & Vision Science as well professor and dean emeritus at the University of California (UC) Berkeley School of Optometry.

Dr. Adams has been a Professor of Optometry and Vision Science (Physiological Optics) since 1968 and Dean of the School of Optometry from 1992 to 2001 at UC Berkeley. He was a member of the University of California President’s Health Sciences Committee from 1992 to 2005 and is an author of the Health Sciences Reports on UC Health education needs. His December 2005 appointment to the UC President’s Health Advisory Council advised the UC Health Education Planning for California in the coming decade.

Dr. Adams was a member of the Executive Council of the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) from 1991 to 2001 and was its President from 1998 to 2000. He has been honored with the Glenn A Fry, Garland W Clay, and Eminent Service Awards of the Academy and received its highest Award, the Prentice Medal for vision research contributions. He was a member of the National Advisory Eye Council from 1996 to 2000, a major consultative body for the Director of the National Eye Council (NEI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the US Secretary of Health and Human Services. He was appointed by the Acting Director of NIH to serve on the search for the new National Eye Institute Director appointed in 2001.

With NEI/NIH support over the past 30 years, Professor Adams has studied the early vision changes of diabetics and has revealed some of the earliest vision and retinal function changes of patients with diabetes.

Links to video of the lecture:

The Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial:
"The Rest of the Story"


October 27th, 2010

Lecture by Dr. Mitchell Scheiman
 

Mitchell M. Scheiman, O.D., FAAO, FCOVD serves as Chief of the Pediatric & Binocular Vision Service and Professor of Optometry at The Eye Institute of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University.

Dr. Scheiman is a Diplomate in Binocular Vision, Vision Perception and Pediatrics in the American Academy of Optometry, and a Fellow in the College of Optometrists in Vision Development. He has served on many national committees for the American Optometric Association and the American Academy of Optometry and serves on the editorial board of several journals. He has published over 100 journal articles and has written 4 textbooks.

Among Dr. Scheiman’s most notable achievement is his position as Chair of the Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial (CITT) since 2004. The Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial (CITT) was the first large scale, randomized clinical trial to investigate the eff ectiveness of vision therapy and required collaboration of almost 100 investigators from multiple sites, including both Optometry and Ophthalmology. His presentation, The Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial: “The Rest of the Story,” is designed to discuss the challenges and lessons learned, both clinical and political, from the initial planning stages through the publication of the primary outcome manuscript.

Links to video of the lecture:

"The Development of Optometry"

October 14th, 2009

Lecture by Dr. Irvin Borish


 

Irvin M. Borish, OD, LLD, is an internationally known scholar in the world of optometry. Dr. Borish is known as the architect of optometry as his work has influenced almost every aspect of optometry for half a century. His accomplishments include that of educator, author, lecturer, clinician, and consultant.

Dr. Borish began his career on the faculty of the Northern Illinois College of Optometry, from which he graduated in 1934. In 1944 he opened a practice in Kokomo, Indiana. He was a member of the initial committee that founded the School of Optometry at Indiana University. After its inauguration in 1953, he commuted from Kokomo to serve as a visiting faculty member. In 1972, he retired from his practice to teach at Indiana University as professor of optometry, serving as director of patient care and teaching courses in clinical procedures and contact lenses until his retirement in 1982, when he became a professor emeritus. In 1982 he was appointed to the first endowed chair in an optometric institution, the Benedict Chair, at the University of Houston. Dr. Borish remained at the University of Houston until 1987. Upon his departure, the university established the Irvin M. Borish Endowed Chair in Optometric Practice. Dr. Borish still travels around the country guest lecturing.