The Department of Ophthalmology was well represented at this year’s American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Subspecialty Day and Annual Meeting, held November 3-6 in San Francisco. Faculty and trainees across several affiliates participated as course instructors, panelists, moderators, and lecturers.
We hosted more than 200 alumni, faculty, and trainees at our annual AAO Alumni Reception. The annual Claes Dohlman Society Dinner and first annual Evangelos Gragoudas Society reception also took place during the Annual Meeting. Both the Dohlman and Gragoudas Societies were started by former trainees of Drs. Dohlman and Gragoudas to honor their mentors and promote networking, and all of their past and present trainees are invited to join.
Congratulations to our faculty and alumni who received AAO awards and presented named lectures for their outstanding contributions to vision research, education, and service.
Grayson Armstrong, MD, MPH, Receives Artemis Award
Grayson Armstrong, MD, MPH, Associate Director of Medical Student Education at Harvard Medical School received this award during the Young Ophthalmologist Program, held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting. This award recognizes a junior ophthalmologist who has demonstrated exceptional care and service to their patients.
Roberto Pineda II, MD, Presents Barraquer Lecture
An internationally recognized clinician and surgical innovator, Roberto Pineda II, MD, was the first faculty member at Mass Eye and Ear to use clear cornea incision techniques, topical and intracameral anesthesia, and limbal relaxing incisions during cataract surgery. He has also brought new techniques and technology to Mass Eye and Ear and New England, including conductive keratoplasty; intacs with intralase for keratoconus; and DLEK, DSEK, and DALK. Dr. Pineda is an Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School and the Thomas Y. and Clara W. Butler Chair in Ophthalmology at Mass Eye and Ear.
Alumna Eve Higginbotham, SM, MD, ML, Presents Jackson Memorial Lecture
Eve J. Higginbotham, SM, MD, ML, is a highly respected leader in academic medicine, an exceptional clinical scientist, and a dedicated advocate for social justice. She was the inaugural Vice Dean for Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and she is a Senior Fellow at the Leonard Davis Institute for Health Economics and Professor of Ophthalmology who specializes in glaucoma.
Alumna Ursula M. Schmidt-Erfurth, MD, Presents Arnall Patz Lecture
Ursula M. Schmidt-Erfurth, MD, was honored for her contributions to retinal vascular and macular disease research. She is Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University Eye Hospital in Vienna, Austria, one of the largest academic institutions in ophthalmology in Europe.
Alumnus Kazuo Tsubota, MD, Presents Whitney G. Sampson Lecture
Kazuo Tsubota, MD, is an internationally recognized anterior eye specialist and the CEO of Tsubota Laboratory. He was a former cornea fellow at Mass Eye and Ear and research fellow at Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass Eye and Ear.
Alumnus James D. Brant, MD, Presents American Glaucoma Society Subspecialty Day Lecture
James D. Brandt, MD, is the Daryl and Opal Geweke Endowed Chair in Glaucoma at the University of California, Davis, where he specializes in pediatric glaucoma.
Lifetime Achievement Honor Award
- David Lee, MD (alumnus)
Senior Achievement Award
- Jessica B. Ciralsky, MD (alumna)
- Thomas A. Ciulla, MD, MBA (alumnus)
- Lucia Sobrin, MD, MPH
- Jennifer K. Sun, MD
Achievement Award
- Mohammad H. Dastjerdi, MD (alumnus)
- Seanna R. Grob, MD (alumna)
- Kathryn M. Hatch, MD
- Pavlina S. Kemp, MD (alumna)
- Nahyoung Grace Lee, MD
- Nazlee Zebardast, MD, MSc
Secretariat Award
- Inas F. Aboobakar, MD
- Kathryn A. Colby, MD, PhD (alumna)
- Mary Lou Jackson, MD (former faculty)
- Paul P. Lee, MD, JD (alumnus)
- Ankoor S. Shah, MD, PhD
- Jason C.S. Yam, MBBS (alumnus)
- Nazlee Zebardast, MD, MSc
International Scholar Recipient
- Takeshi Kezuka, MD, PhD (alumnus)
