A publication for the alumni and friends of the University of Missouri-St. Louis College of Optometry

Winter 2011

Continued on page 2

College of Optometry GraduatesHonored at the MOA

Graduates of the UMSL C o l l e g eof Optometry swept the awards pre-sented at the Annual Meeting of theMissouri Optometric A s s o c i a t i o n(MOA), held October 14-17 in St.Louis. The recipient of the MOA“Optometrist of the Year” was Dr.Scott Ream (‘87), who practices inThayer Missouri. Dr. Ream was intro-duced by Dr. Kyle Brost (‘87) whospoke well of his many accomplish-ments: “How about communityinvolvement?” He's been districtdirector for the Boy Scouts ofAmerica. He's been president of theT h a y e r-Mammoth Springs RotaryClub. He's been a two term Presidentof the Thayer Public SchoolFoundation, a three term President ofthe Oregon County Chapter of theAmerican Cancer Society, and a fiveterm President of the Thayer A r e aChamber of Commerce. How abouthumanitarian efforts? This optometrist

Message Fromthe Dean

has made 24 trips to third world coun-tries with the Volunteers of OptometricServices to Humanity (VOSH). He hasvolunteered his time as a SpecialOlympics optometrist. How aboutservice to the profession? He is a pastPresident of this organization (MOA)and has also served regionally as a pastPresident of the North Central StatesOptometric Council.” Dr. Brost thensummarized all of the numerous MOAand A O A committee and leadershipresponsibilities assumed by Dr. Reamas well as several honors he hasreceived. He concluded with the fol-lowing tribute: “In summation, thisoptometrist has exhibited unparalleledcommitment to the profession. He hasdone everything asked of him, and hasdone everything exceptionally well.”Congratulations Dr. Ream for a welldeserved honor.

Dean Larry Davis with MOA Optometrist of the Year, Dr. Scott Ream ('87)

Year-end Thoughts for 2010

Greetings Friends andColleagues--

It is my distinct pleasure toshare this year end editionof the EyeWire. As you seeeach week there are manyexciting activities that takeplace in the life of theCollege.

We are fortunate to have agroup of creative faculty,dedicated staff, talented student body and supportivefriends and alumni.

2011 promises to be a veryimportant one for the futureof optometric education inMissouri. Wishing you allthe best in the coming year!

Sincerely,

Larry J. Davis,Dean

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NEWS & NOTES

D r. Guoqiang Li has received a pres-tigious five year R01 grant on visioncare in the amount of $1.8M fromthe National Eye Institute ofNational Institutes of Health.C o n g r a t u l a t i o n s !

D r. Ed Bennett received theUniversity of Houston College ofOptometry Award for DistinguishedResearch on the Cornea and ContactLenses during the 27th A n n u a lCornea, Contact Lens, andContemporary Vision CareSymposium held December 4th and5th in Houston.

D r. Ed Bennett was an invitedlecturer at the annual CaliforniaOptometric Association MontereySymposium 2010, held November10-12 in Monterey, California.

Brianne Hobbs (‘10) was recognizedas a 2010 “Top Graduate” in theSeptember 2010 issue of Women inO p t o m e t ry.

D r. Raymond I. Myers, ClinicalP r o f e s s o r, Co-founder and firstPresident of the A m e r i c a nOptometric Student Association wasquoted in the September, 2010 issueof Women in Optometry.

D r. Carl Bassi, Associate Professor,and Michael Howe (Senior ResearchEngineering Technician) had aninvention featured in MissouriTechnology Expo 2010 held October 7th.

D r. Guoqiang Li was elected as aSenior Member of the OpticalSociety of America.

State Representative Steven Ti l l e y,O.D, (‘98) was elected Speaker ofthe Missouri State House ofRepresentatives. He was also featured in the November issue ofA O A N e w s.

Continued, page 3

Graduates Honored (cont. from page 1)

Researchers Invent Device toMeasure Visual Supression

In addition, Melanie Linderer(‘03) was awarded the MOA“ Young OD of the Year” award.D r. Linderer, who practices inL i b e r t y, Missouri is continuingthe excellence in practice that sheshowed as an outstanding student-clinician at the College ofO p t o m e t r y. Renee Newman(‘12) was awarded the Missouri

Optometric Student A s s o c i a t i o nStudent Leader Award. Renee has been a leader in several student org a n i z a t i o n sincluding two years as President of the Fellowship of Christian Optometrists.

The College of Optometry also had a booth at the exhibit hall which allowedalumni to visit. The College of Optometry reception at the MOA was attended byChancellor Thomas George, his wife Dr. Barbara Harbach (Professor, Department ofMusic), and Provost Glen Cope.

Provost Glen Cope, Dr. Ann Ream (‘84), DeanLarry Davis and Chancellor Thomas George

Michael Howe, Dr. Carl Bassi, and Wayne Garver.

The College of Optometry's Dr.Carl Bassi, Associate Professor/Director of Research & GraduateStudies, Michael Howe, SeniorResearch Engineering Technician, andthe Department of Physics' WayneGarver, Research Scientist andLecturer, are inventors of theQuantitative Three Dot (Q3D) (UnitedStates Patent 7686452), the first deviceto quantitatively measure visual sup-pression in children and adults.

Visual suppression results from achange in the brain that results in lossof vision in an eye. The most com-monly encountered eye disease that isassociated with visual suppression isamblyopia (lazy eye). The Q3D is animprovement on a device, the Worth 4dot that has been in use by cliniciansfor over 60 years. It can measure sup-pression in calibrated 0.1 log unitsteps up to a total suppression of 3 logunits (1000X loss in sensitivity). Thisallows a clinician to detect more sub-tle problems and can be used as a wayto measure treatment (patching, visiontraining, optical penalization, surgery)outcomes.

The Q3D is simple for patients(asking to see a light) and takes less aminute to perform. It was evaluated inclinical trials at UM St Louis Collegeof Optometry and at Cardinal GlennonHospital in St Louis. The device isalso be used in a trial at the USCDepartment of Ophthalmology in atrial to evaluate patients with opticneuritis or anterior ischemic optic neuropathy.

THE ROAD THAT ENDED IN FAMILY;UMSL'S “SISTERS”

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NEWS & NOTES

D r. Barbara Brown (‘88) washonored as the “RiverstarsEmployee of the Month” for theU M S L campus for the month ofN o v e m b e r. Each month, the HumanResources department recognizes anoutstanding employee who excels ina particular area. Dr. Brown washonored for providing “OutstandingCustomer Service.”

Diane (Werkmeister) Wilson (‘88)was recently honored by VisionMonday as one of the 40 mostinfluential women in the opticalindustry. Dr. Wilson is Presidentof Arnold EyeCare center. She hasbeen an active member of theArnold Rotary Club and also hasbeen active in Volunteers ofOptometric Services to Humanity(VOSH). She organizes yearlymission trips to Haiti andGuatemala, where she providesoptometric care, including medicalmanagement and glasses to thosein need.

D r. Allison (Ali) Hall (‘03) and herhusband, Mel, are pleased toannounce the birth of their daughter,Hannah Nicole Hall, on August 22,2010. weighing 6lb 14.6 oz. length19 3/4inches.

Continued, page 4

They could not have started more dif-ferently. One (Katie Howard) wasfrom rural southeast Missouri, attend-ing a small undergraduate institutionin Arkansas and was admitted into theCollege of Optometry after only twoyears of undergraduate school. Theother (Jennifer Lawson Howard) grad-uated from the University of Tulsa inOklahoma with a father and stepmoth-er who both had a private practice inTulsa. This story is how the path theytook resulted in a togetherness thatcould only occur with family.According to Katie their first meetingwas fortuitous: “I found Jennifer'sname on the list of people needing aroommate. I decided to give her a callto see if she wanted to room togetherand I literally called her during themiddle of an Oklahoma tornado. Iremember asking her if I needed tocall her back since it was a bad timewith the severe weather, and she actedlike it was no big deal. I should haveseen that as a sign that her “laid-backstyle” would mesh well with me.During our first semester, we got toknow each other better. I mentioned afew times to her about meeting mybrother, but it wasn't until secondsemester, first year, that they finallymet. It was in April, and my brother,

David, drove up fromDexter to go to a Cardsgame with us. It obvious-ly was a good firstimpression and firstmeeting for both of them-ha!”

Jennifer and Katieended up living togetherthroughout optometryschool. Interestingly, notonly did they develop avery close friendship butJennifer ultimatelybecame engaged to Davidand they soon married.

Like sisters, they did notwant to be separated. “We alreadywere constants in each others' livesthrough our friendship,” indicatedKatie, “and soon we would be sisters.The thought of practicing together wasgreat, and I knew that if I had tochoose a doctor to work with, it wouldno doubt be Jennifer.”

However, upon graduation, theyinitially took different paths. Katietook a position in Florence, Alabamawhereas Jennifer opened her own pri-vate practice called Dexter Family EyeCare, LLC in Dexter, MO. They bothshared the idea of furthering their edu-cation to help them with the rigors ofprivate practice. While Jennifer wascompleting a Master's degree in PublicHealth, Katie completed a Master'sdegree in Business Administration.However, they could not stay separatedfor long. As Katie relates: “I think Ialways knew deep down that I wantedto be at home working with Jennifer,so I returned in May 2009 and beganworking with Jennifer. Currently, Iwork with Jennifer, and also at a ruralcommunity health clinic, SoutheastMissouri Health Network. Things aregoing well and we are finally workingtogether.”

Dr. Jennifer LawsonHoward (‘08)

Dr. Katie Howard (‘08)

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NEWS & NOTES

Jennifer (Lawson) Howard (‘08)and her husband David are theproud parents of Samuel David,born October 19th.

Ryan and Abi Barnes (’07) had ab a b y, Raymond Oliver (7 lbs., 11oz.) born October 22nd.

Barbara Rooney Aalbers (‘03),President of the St. LouisOptometric Society, introducedMichael Arthur Rooney (6 lbs., 13oz.) into the world on November20th.

Jessica Trigg Mai (‘08) and hus-band Jeremy welcomed KylerClayton (7 lb., 4 oz.) into theworld on December 1st.

The UMSLCollege of Optometryhas always been veryinvolved in campusintramural sports andthese activities haveserved as a great stressreliever while alsoallowing class mem-bers to become moreengaged with theirclass as well as otherclasses. Sports inwhich the College ofOptometry has partici-pated have includedvolleyball, flag football,basketball, soccer, andsoftball with many ofthese involving co-edteams. In fact, the Classof 2014 had two co-ed volleyballteams which is not uncommon for firstyear classes. In addition, the only twoladies flag football teams on campusbelonged to optometry and the Classesof 2013 and 2014 had a spirited cham-pionship game.

Four UMSL College of Optometryteams distinguished themselves in avery favorable manner during the Fall,2010 season. The floor hockey teamwon the campus championship. Theteam consisted of both members of theClass of 2012 (Patrick Stark, EricStoltz, Dustin Wiles, and Arthur Wang)and Class of 2013 (Will Waldie, RobEnsley, Mason Seelinger, and SethBachelier). According to Arthur Wang:“We entered the playoffs seeded firstafter winning 3 games and losing oncein round robin. We won the semifinalsgame 4-1 and then beat the PIKEs 7-4in the finals! Patrick was our goaliethroughout the tournament and wasprobably the MVP. “

The combined Class of 2012 andClass of 2014 men's flag football alsodistinguished itself, losing in overtimein the campus championship against anexceptional undergraduate team.

With a huge cheering section presentto encourage them, they played an out-standing game. Tareq Nabhan ('12),who has an exceptional background inmany sports, coordinates intramuralsfor his class and commented on thisgame: "We were a hybrid of 1st and3rd years, yet we played without dis-tinction and with the welcomedresponsibility of representing our pro-gram. It was an honor to play in frontof a sideline packed with our decoratedclassmates and our professors; theirsupport meant everything."

Finally, the ladies campus volley-ball championship game featured twoCollege of Optometry teams. TheClass of 2012 intramural volleyballteam, Optometrist Prime, won the girlschampionship for the third year in arow. Team members included HeidiEnsley, Tuesday Warner, ReneeNewman, and Jessica Young. Theyplayed the Class of 2014 girls team,Green Machine, for the championship.

UMSL College of Optometry Flag Football Team (left toright): Dean Schultz, Brad Englebarts, Alan Wegener, DanPuls, Tareq Nabhan, Mike Waclawski, Andrew Piester, NathanEaves, Jeremey Dohogne, and Dustin Wiles.

Optometry Students Excel inCampus Intramurals

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UMSL College of Optometry Featured at the AnnualMeeting of the American Academy of Optometry

Campus Intramural (continued from page 4)

UMSL College of Optometry Campus Girls Volleyball Championsand Runner-ups. Top Row (left to right): Cara Finn (‘14), TuesdayWarner (‘12), Heidi Ensley (‘12), Renee Newman (‘12), Jessica Young(‘12), and Andrea Peerson (‘14). Bottom Row (left to right): SarahGriffin (‘14), Alaina Mudder (‘14), Hilary Morrow (‘14), and KatieVan den Einde (‘14)

The College of Optometry had aprominent role in San Francisco wherefaculty and graduates presented (atminimum) 7 scientific presentationsincluding the following:

1. Anthony DeWilde OD (‘07):“Atypical Manifestations of a CentralRetinal Artery Occlusion”2. Kim Kohne OD (‘04): “Purtscher'sRetinopathy”3. Jamie Gold OD (‘10), JulieDeKinder OD, Vinita Henry OD, andEd Bennett OD, MSEd: Contact LensFitting Following BlepharoplastySurgery”4. Tim Wingert OD, HowardMcAlister OD: “Results from a VOSHMission to SAMOA”5. Vandana Rajaram PhD (UMSL‘05): “Use of the pattern VisualEvoked Potential to predict visual acu-ity potential in young adults” 6. Sandhya Subramania MS (UMSL‘03): “Are two eyes always betterthan one? Effect of binocular inhibi-tion on visual sensitivity”

7. Jessica Carson (‘11), Jordan Jones(‘11), and Jeff Weaver, OD, MBA, MS(Adjunct Professor): “Tonometer tipdisinfection methods and nosocomialinfections”

In addition, eightindividuals with anUMSL affiliationwere awarded theirFellow at theSaturday night honorsbanquet. Those hon-ored included: Antione Barnett, OD(‘08), Jennifer (Einhorn) Brown, OD(‘09), Dan Dillinger, OD (‘03), JulieHutchinson, OD (Assistant AdjunctProfessor), Adam Lee, OD (‘08), Arraya Paksin-Hall, OD (‘02),

Sandhya Subramaniam MS (UMSL‘03), Le Truong, OD (‘03)

Ed Bennett OD, MSEd, AssistantDean of Student Services and AlumniRelations, presided as Chair of theSection on Cornea, Contact Lenses andRefractive Technologies during thefour day meeting. Dean Larry Davispresided over the annual College ofOptometry Alumni Reception whichwas attended by College alumni

and students.

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A Sincere Thank You to Our DonorsThe College of Optometry's suc-

cess is due, in part, to the generosityof its alumni and friends. Donors helpprovide academic resources, scholar-ships, clinical care and more. The peo-ple listed below contributed to theCollege last fiscal year (July 1, 2009-June 30, 2010). Their assistance isgreatly appreciated. If your name is onthis list, thank you. We hope to haveyour continued support in the future.

A sincere thank you is extended toour generous donors for Fiscal Year2010.

$20,000 and AbovePepose Vision Institute

$1,500 to $19,999Alcon Laboratories, Inc.Crown Vision CenterEye Care Centers of America, Inc.Mr. Patrick H. GadellMissouri Optometric Foundation, Inc.Dr. Christina M. Sorenson

$500 to $1,499Dr. Larry and Mrs. Janice DavisDr. Thomas and Mrs. Sally GreeneVision Service Plan

Up to $499Dr. Carl G. AbbottDr. Miriam L. AndersonDr. Valerie J. BarberDr. Beth M. BazinMrs. Alice J. BennettDrs. Edward and Jean BennettBonhomme Lions ClubDr. Stacey R. Wenger BowlingDr. Barbara W. BrownDr. Kathleen E. BuffingtonDr. Mark A. CaldarolaCarlson Eye ClinicDr. Bruce H. CohenDr. Julie L. DeKinderDr. Gail J. Bass DerscheidMr. Nixon D. DoddJohn E. Drenon, O.D.Dr. Kenton R. DriverDr. Mercy A. Elahi-NealDr. Lora J. ElliottDr. Jerome A. Fay

ForSight Eyecare LLCDr. Terri A. GieskeDr. Mark W. GiffordDr. Stephanie R. GogginMs. Julie M. GramDr. Danna D. HabaDr. Suzanne M. HaganDr. Shawna L. HeddinghausDr. Beth A. HendersonMr. Sam and Dr. Vinita HenryDr. James G. HuntressMr. John P. HurdDr. Rachel L. JohnsonShane R. Kannarr, O.D.Dr. Kristi R. Kessler-WilliamsKirk's Eye CenterDr. J. Matt KirksDr. Kathleen C. KleekampMrs. Marcia S. KopitskyDr. Tron Y. LallyMr. Gregory J. MacKeyMascoma Eye CareMrs. Jean H. MathewsSuzanne Lynn Bachman Mathews,O.D.Dr. Ichiro MatsudaDr. Kathleen T. MattinglyDr. Gerald A. McLaughlinDr. Paul A. MocciaDr. Jill M. MogilDr. G. Troy MorkDr. Raymond I. MyersDr. Rex A. NewcombDr. Todd A. NitchmanDr. Susan D. NixonNorthwest Vision CenterDr. Bridgette A. Ostmeyer-MoorePalombi Vision CenterCraig D. Perry, O.D.Dr. Eric E. PolkThe Honorable Anne C. Ream, O.D.Dr. Victor H. Roeder, IIISaint Louis Optometric SocietyDr. Christopher G. SeepColleen C. Shear, O.D.Dr. John J. TurleyVisionCare Associates, Inc.Dr. Ellen L. WeissWolters Kluwer Health, Inc.Dr. Peter H. Zimmerman

NEWS & NOTES

James E. “Jim” Sheedy, OD, MS,Ph.D. was honored at the ninthannual Fechner Day. Dr. Sheedyhas an impressive backgroundwith over 80 peer-reviewed pub-lished articles, chapters and bookswhile being awarded over$2,000,000 in external funding.He has received numerous honorsincluding both the DistinguishedAchievement Award and theWilliam Feinbloom Award fromthe American Academy ofO p t o m e t r y. He is currentlyDirector of the Vi s i o nPerformance Institute at thePacific University College ofO p t o m e t r y.

D r. Carl Bassi, Director ofResearch and Graduate Studies,once again introduced our hon-ored guest and entertained theaudience with the history andimpact of Gustav Fechner. Dr.Sheedy delivered the Fechner Daylecture on the topic of "Vision asthe Basis for Mind and HumanBehavior" to a completely filledS G A Chamber in the MillenniumStudent Center. As the traditioncontinues, following the lecturethe summer fellowship studentspresented posters from their sum-mer research and everyoneenjoyed German chocolate cake.

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Second Annual “Optometry’s Got Talent”

The College of Optometry pridesitself on the diversity on individualswho comprise the program. Studentswho are well-rounded and were veryengaged in extracurricular activities inhigh school and college often are suc-cessful - not only at the College ofOptometry - but later in their profes-sional career. An area where theCollege of Optometry is excelling iswith students who have a background inthe performing arts. With that in mind,the UMSL N a t i o n a lOptometric StudentA s s o c i a t i o n ( N O S A )hosted the second annualArtistic Vision Ta l e n tShowcase on November5th. Eric Jerde (‘12) - ashe did so effectively lastyear - entertained theaudience in his role asMaster of Ceremonies.The performances were - once again -remarkable. With an audience ofapproximately 80 students, faculty, ands t a ff, seven performances were given,all by optometry students and they werevery well received by those who attend-ed. Talented singer and guitarist JakeHayward (‘13) combined his vocalswith the dancing provided by theatre

veteran Carrie McDowell (‘13) to theclassic Phantom of the Opera selection“Music of the Night” and they wereawarded first place for their outstandingperformance. Second place went to anamazing singer with a phenomenalvoice (and last year's inaugural eventwinner) Angel Husher (‘13) for hervocal rendition of “Hallejuah”. T h i r dplace went to another very talented per-f o r m e r, Suzanne Lakamp, who washighlighted recently on Channel 5 for

her association with the St. LouisBallroom Club. Suzy entertainedeveryone with a “Cha Cha Cha” ball-room dance. For Angel, it personifiedwhat an important and necessary outletthis is for optometry students. “TheN O S A sponsored Talent Show will nodoubt be a tradition for years to come.It truly is amazing how much unbeliev-

able talent is here at the College ofO p t o m e t r y. We have some of the mostincredible dancers, singers, piano play-ers, guitar players, and other musiciansthat I have ever seen. I love to perform,and it is such an honor to be given anopportunity to sing on stage. As we allknow Optometry School is not onlygut-wrenching stressful hard work, butit can also leave one feeling incompe-tent and unworthy of the task at hand.This talent show allows us to get pastthose feelings and express another sideof ourselves beyond academics. It pro-vides us with a reassuring outlet, andmost importantly it leaves the perform-ers, audience members, and the schoolfor that mater with a sense of conta-gious enjoyment and pride. I cannotwait for next year's talent show!”

The UMSL College of Optometryis proud to have perhaps the most dedi-cated and successful NOSA chapter inthe country. Every month they providescreenings, and numerous other pro-grams to assist and educate individualsin the greater St. Louis Community.“Optometry's Got Talent” not onlyserves as a great vehicle for students todisplay their many talents but alsoserves as a very successful fundraiser,raising approximately $320 for the St.Louis Public Schools Foundation

Eyeglasses for Kids(KidSmart) program. NOSAPresident Vanessa Braimah(‘13) summarizes the impactof this program quite well:“This year's Artistic Vi s i o nTalent Show "Optometry'sGot Talent" was a wonderfulopportunity to unite theOptometry community. A sstudents, we often only seeeach other in an academic

setting, so it was refreshing to see thediverse range of talent that fellow class-mates and peers possess.

In addition, NOSA was able toraise money for KidSmart, and bringtogether the Optometry community foran incredible night of quality entertain-m e n t . ”

(From left to right) Master of Ceremonies Eric Jerde (‘12), NOSA PresidentVanessa Braimah (‘13) and first place winners Jake Hayward (‘13) and CarrieMcDowell (‘13).

The EYEwire is published by the Office of the Dean at the University ofMissouri-St. Louis College of Optometry.

D r. Edward Bennett, EditorE B e n n e t t @ u m s l . e d u

Janice White, Designerj a n i c e . w h i t e @ u m s l . e d u

D r. Larry J. Davis, Deanl j d a v i s @ u m s l . e d u

If you have missed a previous issue of the EyeWire you can locate the archivepage as well as the current issue at: e

http://optometry.umsl.edu/news/EyeWireArchives.html

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Office of the Dean

One University BoulevardSt. Louis, Missouri 63121-4400

Telephone: 314-516-5606Fax: 314-516-6708

http://optometry.umsl.edu

Non-Profit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDSt. Louis, MOPermit No. 3

Upcoming CE Events

Nutrition and the Eye IV, April 16 & 17, 2011Saturday & Sunday - 12 hrs COPE/CEECoordinator: Stuart Richer, O.D., Ph. D.

Coding Update 2011, May 9, 2011Monday evening - 4 hrs COPE/CESpeaker: John McGreal, O.D.

Annual Optometry Academe, August 14, 2011Sunday - 8 hrs COPE/CEE"What Went Wrong & Why Adventures in Anterior Segment Care,"Paul Karpecki, O.D."AMD Practical . . . A Pro-Active Approach Retinal Findings withSystemic Diseases," Jeffrey Gerson, O.D.

Please call Lis Ellerbusch with questions regarding continuting education at 314-516-5615 or email her at ellerbusch@umsl.edu.