Graduates of the UW-Madison Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences residency and fellowship programs are in academic medical centers and private practices throughout the world. Let’s celebrate all the things that make our alumni great! Join us to connect and give back to support the next generation of alumni. Once a Badger, always a Badger!
honor
Distinguished Alumni Award
Each year the UW Ophthalmology Alumni Association recognizes an alum for outstanding service and commitment with the Distinguished Alumni Award, presented at the annual Alumni+Friends Reception during the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.
Learn more about the 2022 recipient, Don O. Kikkawa, MD, here.
Here is a list of past recipients.
2005: Steve W. Weber, MD, Residency 1975
2006: Earl G. Gloeckner, MD, Residency 1980, Fellowship-Pediatrics 1981
2007: C. Thomas Dow, MD, Residency 1978
2008: Richard Lewis, MD, Residency 1998
2010: Michael P. Vrabec, MD, Residency 1987
2012: Gregg Heatley, MD, Residency 1991, Fellowship-Glaucoma 1992
2013: Elmer Y Tu, MD, Residency 1992
2014: Francis Charles Sutula, MD, Fellowship-Oculoplastics 1979
2015: Richard E. Appen, MD, Residency 1972
2016: Karla J. Johns, MD, Residency 1984
2017: Devin A. Harrison, MD, Residency 1993
2018: Gregory L. Skuta, MD, Residency 1985
2019: W. Andrew Harris, MD, Residency 1974
2020: Mary V. Pratt, MD, Residency, 1965, Fellowship-Medical Retina, 1966
2022: Don O. Kikkawa, MD, FACS, Fellowship-Oculoplastics, 1992
Connect
Stay Engaged
There are many ways to stay connected to your fellow alumni and the department:
- Attend the annual Alumni+Friends Reunion held each fall at the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting. Watch our events page for the latest information.
- Send us a note to let us know what’s new.
- Join the alumni board of directors. We meet two times per year to hear department updates and discuss ways to improve engagement and support current learners. Reach out to learn more.
Give Back
Extend our vision
Gifts help the department continue to conduct high-quality research and to provide state-of-the-art clinical care and world-class training for tomorrow’s leaders in eye care and vision research. This support—from patients, families, alumni, faculty and other friends—provides the extra margin essential for excellence. Read more below about our latest priority: a new surgical skills training facility.
INTRODUCING THE NEW SURGICAL SKILLS TRAINING FACILITY
The UW-Madison Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences is embarking on an exciting new chapter with the launch of a modern Surgical Skills Training Facility in the UW Health University Station Clinic. We’re working to right-size our training space in a central location with equipment that creates a more realistic, hands-on experience for learners.
We believe that the foundation of surgical training occurs in the surgical training wet lab, where learners gain skills, familiarity and confidence in the steps of ophthalmic surgery prior to caring for patients in the operating room.
This expanded space will:
- Allow one faculty member to train multiple learners at one time and promote peer-to-peer interactions.
- Expand continuing education and training class offerings for alumni and community providers as new advances occur.
- Create a more realistic hands-on experience, preparing our learners for the situations they will encounter in surgery.
- Provide ease of access and new opportunities for learning before, after or between clinic time as well as on weekends.
Our goal is to raise $100,000 to offset the annual operating costs and to honor Dr. Andrew T. Thliveris, (Residency 1998), Residency Program Director, for his dedication and care to training the next generation of ophthalmic surgeons.
A TRIBUTE TO ANDREW T. THLIVERIS
Residency education and the name Andrew T. Thliveris, MD, PhD go hand-in-hand at the DOVS. Thliveris completed his residency at UW in 1998 and has been overseeing resident training since 2007. His care and dedication to training the next generation of ophthalmic surgeons are evident. Dr. Richard Dortzbach, Professor Emeritus and 1967 residency alumni, wants to see that dedication recognized in the new Surgical Skills Training Facility. The new lab will bear a plaque that reads in part:
In Appreciation of Andrew T. Thliveris, MD, PhD
From His Colleagues, Learners, and Friends
Through the generosity of Dr. Dortzbach and Dr. Tom Stevens, Professor Emeritus, and others, we are nearly to our goal of $100,000. Join us with a gift to advance residency education and honor Dr. Thliveris.
Alumni News
WANDA MARTINEZ NAMED 2023 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNA
Aug 07 2023
We are pleased to announce that Wanda Martinez, MD, PhD is the recipient of the 2023 Ophthalmology Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award.
Read More
Department’s First Cornea Fellow Treats More Than Just Eyes
Jun 19 2023
For Edith Navarro, MD, a 1995 graduate – and the department’s first – of the UW’s ophthalmology cornea fellowship program, providing care for those in need is about much more than just their eyes. As medical director of the Tzu Chi Eye Center in Santa Mesa, Philippines, Navarro believes good eye care treats the whole person in a compassionate way.
Read More
Guillermo de Venecia: Honoring a Lifetime of Compassionate, Dedicated Service
May 25 2023
The Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences is saddened by the loss of longtime faculty member, colleague and beloved friend Guillermo de Venecia, MD. De Venecia died May 11, 2023, at the age of 91.
Read More
Remembering Dr. Alice McPherson
Jan 20 2023
With great sadness, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences mourns the passing of notable alumna, retina specialist, and vision research advocate Alice McPherson, MD on January 16th, 2023.
Read More