News, Media and Stories | Optometry

Pacific optometry alumnus and professor Bill Hefner OD ‘96, MEd ‘97 is a commander in the Kansas Air National Guard. He played a key role in the state’s response to the spread of COVID-19.
Mari Fujimoto
Pacific University Optometry Professor Mari Fujimoto OD ’19 was honored with one of the 2020 Johnson & Johnson Vision Residency Awards. The George W. Mertz Contact Lens Residency Award supports post-graduate advanced training in optometric clinical care, education and research methods specific to the fields of children’s vision and contact lenses.
jefferson hall exterior
We celebrate 75 years of Optometry at Pacific University with a look back through the years.
E-course flier
SpeakOut’s Race, Power, and Privilege E-Course offers video lessons, readings, activities, reflections, check-ins, and resources that help foster a more equitable and inclusive campus culture. Free enrollment being offered to a limited number of undergraduate and graduate students.
Carkner plaque
One of the most prominent names connected with Pacific’s College of Optometry is Carkner, and the connection began before the beginning.
DeAnn Fitzgerald ’81, OD ’84 of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has become well known for her focus on using optometry as a way to manage athletes’ concussions. She has developed protocols for young athletes who suffer head injuries, and her work has been widely shared and emulated around the country.
Soccer Player kicks ball
Within the field of optometry, sports vision has emerged as a fast-moving specialty. And within sports vision, Pacific is a leader.
Asparagus Fritatta
Sandra (Coutts) Young ‘82, OD ‘84 created a business called Visionary Kitchen, which connects nutrition with eye health. She is the author of Visionary Kitchen: A Cookbook for Eye Health.
father holds his baby
When it comes to detecting problems with vision, it pays to start early, before brains are hardwired. In InfantSEE, a public health program in which Pacific participates, the patients may be as young as 6 months old.
Student conducting an eye exam
Pacific has built on a tradition of taking eye care to the community, where students and faculty provide real-world vision screening and treatment to underserved members of the community. The most visible symbol of this outreach is the Pacific EyeVan, an advanced mobile clinic that sees patients in church parking lots, migrant camps and schools.

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