American Optometric Association Announces 2024 Award Recipients

American Optometric Association Announces 2024 Award Recipients
 

Jeffrey J. Walline, OD, PhD – Optometric Educator of the Year
Dr. Walline is the current Dean of The Ohio State University College (OSU) of Optometry and previously served as chair of the Research and Graduate Studies Committee and was an associate dean of research. Throughout his tenure at OSU, Dr. Walline has led several pediatric contact lens studies to evaluate the effect of contact lens wear on myopia progression and children’s self-perceptions. Dr. Walline was a member of the American Optometric Association’s (AOA) Council on Research, is immediate past chair of the AOA Council for the Cornea and Contact Lens Section, and is a member of the Food and Drug Administration Myopia Control Review Taskforce.

The American Optometric Student Association’s (AOSA) Student of the Year Award recognizes optometry students in their third- or fourth-year of school who show leadership skills when serving their profession, patients and community. This year’s winner is Maggie Dunn, currently in her third-year at the Ohio State University College of Optometry. As president of her college’s chapter of AOSA, she is an active leader in Ohio’s advocacy efforts to modernize optometric scope of practice. She actively engaged and educated legislators on the depth and breadth of optometric education at the Ohio Optometric Association’s Optometry Day at the Statehouse. Dunn also works with pre-optometry students as a “Big Sibling” and has been a member of Optometry Ambassadors since 2021.