Academy Section Awards

Section on Cornea, Contacts Lenses & Refractive Technologies Awards

Founders' Award

This award is in memory of, and in honor of, those Academy Fellows who founded the Contact Lens Section of the American Academy of Optometry. The award was originally the Policoff Award, honoring one of the Section founders, William W. Policoff. As other Founders died, it seemed wise to change the name to honor all the founders of the Section with one award. Since the Policoff Award was never approved by the Board of Directors (formerly referred to as the Executive Council), the Section in 1979 renamed this award the "Founders’ Award". As such, there have been no recipients of the Policoff Award only the Founders’ Award. This award is flexible in that the Section can forego making or presenting it to one or more worthy individuals at each meeting.

The Founders’ Award is in the form of a "plaque of recognition". The award (or awards, not more than two per year)is to be presented to an individual, group, or company who has made an outstanding contribution to the clinical aspect of the art or science of contact lens fitting.

The Cornea and Contact Lens Section Executive Committee nominates the recipient or recipients. The Section Executive Committee consists of the Section Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary-Treasurer, Papers Chairman, Courses Chairman, Diplomate Award Chairman, and the Immediate Past Chairman. The committee is chaired by the Immediate Past Chairman. The documented nomination or nominations shall reach the Academy Awards Committee Chairman by the first day of September prior to the annual meeting, with copies to the Academy President and Academy Secretary-Treasurer. The decision by the Awards Committee to recommend no award, one award, or two awards shall be made to the Academy Board of Directors by October 1.

The expense of preparing "plaques of recognition" is to be borne by the Cornea and Contact Lens Section. The presentation of this award is to be done by the Contact Lens Section Chairman at the Annual Contact Lens Section Meeting.

Past Award Recipients

Max Schapero Memorial Lecture Award

The Max Schapero Memorial Lecture was established in 1972 to honor the memory of Max Schapero who was a dedicated member of the Section and the Academy. Max Schapero (1921-1972) served for a number of years as the Chairman of the Section’s Papers and Program Committee. Professor Schapero was on the faculty of the Southern California College of Optometry, and was the author of the "Dictionary of Visual Science" and a text entitled "Amblyopia". After his untimely death in 1972, the Section established this memorial lecture in his honor. The award is in the form of a plaque that is given to a clinician, researcher, or scholar who has made a significant contribution to the cornea and contact lens field by virtue of his publications, lectures, or research efforts.

The Max Schapero Memorial Lecture Award Committee decides who shall be chosen to receive this annual award. The Committee is made up of the four recent Past Chairmen of the Section, the Chairman, and Vice-Chairman of the Section. The Committee is chaired by the Immediate Past Chairman of the Section. Recipients are asked to present a twenty minute lecture during the Cornea and Contact Lens Section’s meeting held at the American Academy of Optometry’s Annual Meeting. The topic and content of the lecture are left to the discretion of the recipient and the Committee but it should relate to the recipient’s work in the cornea and contact lens field.

Past Recipients

Public Health and Environmental Vision Section Awards

Henry B. Peters Memorial Award in Public Health and Environmental Vision

The Henry B. Peters Memorial Award is administered by the American Academy of Optometry Foundation and is given to an individual for his/her exemplary contributions to public health and/or environmental vision over many years.  The recipient of the Henry B. Peters Memorial Award need not be an optometrist or an Academy Fellow. The honoree will be required to attend the Section program and present an address in that program of not less than 30 minutes on a public health and/or environmental vision topic of his/her choice.

Nominations can be made by any Academy Fellow in good standing, and must be sent via electronic submission to Dr. Kent Harrington. A complete nomination consists of two parts: (1) a cover letter and (2) a copy of the nominee's curriculum vitae (CV). The cover letter should summarize the nominee's contributions to Public Health and/or Environmental Vision, and should be no more than two pages in length. The nominator must include a statement verifying the nominee understands that, if selected to receive the award, he or she will be required to give a lecture of not less than 30 minutes duration on a topic of his or her choice in a Section symposium during the annual meeting. There is no prescribed format for the CV.

Past Award Recipients