NEW YORK—Several leading professional and industry optometric professionals are scheduled to take part in "An Honest Conversation about Race & Optometry," a live webinar exploring Diversity & Leadership Development in Industry and the Profession," the third in a series of panels hosted by the SUNY College of Optometry. The session is open for registration and will be held on Sept. 23 from 7:00 p.m. ET to 9:00 p.m. ET. The third of SUNY Optometry's webinar series discusses how to increase diversity and provide leadership development in industry and professional organizations by bringing together leaders in those areas. The first two parts of the series discussed the experiences of Black optometrists as students and doctors and offered solutions to problems of diversity, inclusion, and mentorship within optometric education.

The Sept. 23 program panel includes:

Dr. Derrick Artis
Chief Operating Officer, Vision Source
Management Consultant, Artis Consulting, LLC

Dr. Jacqueline Bowen
Trustee, American Optometric Association Board

Dr. Millicent Knight
Senior Vice President, Customer Development Group, Essilor of America

Dr. Edwin C. Marshall
Professor Emeritus, Optometry and Public Health
Past Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs, Indiana University

Dr. Andrew Mick
Director, American Academy of Optometry Residency Coordinator, San Francisco VA Medical Center
Associate Clinical Professor, UC Berkeley Optometry

Dr. Howard Purcell
President and CEO, New England College of Optometry

Veronica Schuver
Secretary & Diversity Project Team Member, American Optometric Student Association
4th-year Optometry Student, Ohio State College of Optometry

Dr. Ruth Shoge
Assistant Professor, Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University
Chair-Elect, ASCO Diversity & Cultural Competency Committee  

SUNY Optometry noted that the webinar has a capacity of 500 attendees only. If you’re not able to join the Zoom stream, visitors can visit the College's Facebook live stream Link at https://www.facebook.com/SUNYCPE/

The webinar will be recorded and made available afterward on the SUNY CPE website.