Pacific University

The earliest contact lenses were made of glass and could be worn only for a few hours at a time. Today’s contact lenses are engineering marvels, and Pacific’s College of Optometry is at the vanguard of contact lens research and design.

The remarkable Newton Wesley ’39, Hon. ’86, born Newton Uyesugi to immigrant parents, was a founding father of the College of Optometry. Forced from his home by Japanese-American internment policy during World War II, Wesley nevertheless laid the foundation for the College of Optometry and became a giant in the field of contact lenses.

The optometry program launched at Pacific in 1945 as a result of a combination of postwar challenges and unexpected opportunities. The needs of a small, temporarily shuttered optometry college in Northeast Portland helped meet the demands of a university that had limped through the war years. The outcome was the beginning of Pacific’s focus on the health professions.

Scott Pike '68, OD '70 has been awarded the Pacific University Alumni Association 2020 Outstanding Alumni Award.

Breanne McGhee OD ’16, MEd ’16 hasn't let COVID-19 setbacks slow her down — even though she can't hug anybody. 

One of the most insightful thinkers and teachers ever to be employed at Pacific was Anna Berliner, a psychologist by title, but also an anthropologist, sociologist, optometrist and visual researcher.

After Bernard Brown '49, OD '50 earned a Purple Heart and his way home from the European Theater in World War II, he pursued a lifelong career in optometry with a degree from Pacific University. Later, he helped other veterans follow him into the profession.

Third-generation Pacific optometry student Ian Cheslock honored his family legacy by signing his late grandfather's name into the Golden Guard sidewalk.

Pacific University alumnus Dr. Shinji Seki OD ’79 will receive the eighth annual Kamelia Massih Prize for a Distinguished Optometrist on May 19 at the university’s graduate and professional Commencement ceremony.

At Pacific, caring for student-athletes is a community affair. Before any football players stepped onto Ledbetter Field for practices, they received care from dental hygiene and optometry students. 

The successful practitioner in the Seattle area has built a thriving optical and hearing center, and served his local community and optometric profession with distinction for more than 30 years.

Dr. Weberling received the honor at Pacific's spring commencement on May 21, 2016.