Event Highlights Leaders from Microsoft, Mount Sinai, NYC Health + Hospitals, CooperVision, EssilorLuxottica, Among Others
September 11, 2026
Image provided by SUNY College of Optometry Foundation
NEW YORK — The SUNY College of Optometry Foundation is hosting its inaugural Advancing Vision Summit on Friday, September 25. The college announced the speakers, topics and agenda for the event: The Intersection of AI, Eye Care, and Public Health. The free, day-long event will bring together leaders in healthcare, technology, public health, research and optometry to explore the future of eyecare and its role in improving broader health outcomes.
Presented in celebration of the Foundation’s 70th anniversary, the Summit is expected to welcome more than 150 clinicians, public health leaders and community partners for a day of discussion focused on artificial intelligence in healthcare, oculomics, population health, women’s eye health, myopia management, medical technology, community-based care and the connection between vision and systemic health.
“The Advancing Vision Summit reflects the SUNY College of Optometry Foundation’s commitment to advancing patient care, education, and research by bringing together leaders from across disciplines,” said Dawn Rigney, Executive Director of the SUNY College of Optometry Foundation. “This inaugural event will create an important forum for sharing ideas, building partnerships and exploring innovative approaches that can improve eye health and expand access to care.”
A Look at The Program
The program will open with a keynote presentation from Dr. David C. Rhew, Global Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of Health and Life Sciences at Microsoft. His session, “Closing the Blind Spot with Healthcare from the Eye,” will explore the real-world application of oculomics, or “Healthcare from the Eye,” and how AI-enabled tools, coordinated care pathways, responsible AI practices and partnerships can help health systems identify risk earlier and manage larger patient populations.
Additional morning sessions will examine how population data can be used to improve vision health outcomes, how collaborative approaches can support childhood myopia management and how women’s eye health represents an important frontier in preventive care. The morning program will also include a panel on medical technology and innovation, featuring investors discussing how capital can help move breakthrough ideas in eyecare and health innovation toward patient impact.
Afternoon sessions will focus on artificial intelligence, digital health and public health; the use of ocular biomarkers to identify systemic disease before symptoms begin; and the growing role of Federally Qualified Health Centers and community health centers in integrating vision care into population health strategies.
The Summit will close with a SUNY Optometry-led myopia research panel moderated by Dr. Lisa Ostrin, Dean for Graduate Studies and Research at SUNY College of Optometry. The session will feature Dr. Alexandra Benavente-Perez, Dr. Xiaoying Zhu and L. Wayne Spencer in a discussion of how myopia research moves from molecular and cellular discoveries to translational studies, clinical trials, and meaningful outcomes for patients.
Speakers and sessions include:
- Dr. David C. Rhew, Global Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of Health and Life Sciences at Microsoft: “Closing the Blind Spot with Healthcare from the Eye”
- Dr. Dean VanNasdale, Associate Professor at Ohio State University College of Optometry: “The Future of Vision Health: Leveraging Population Data in the Quest for Better Eye Care and Health Outcomes”
- Dr. Felicia Timmermann, Senior Manager, Professional Affairs at CooperVision, and Dr. Damaris Raymondi, Practice Owner and Founder of Sur Eye Care: “A Shared Vision for Children’s Health: Collaborative Approaches to Myopia Management”
- Dr. Neda Gioia ’06, Founder of Integrative Vision: “Women’s Eye Health: The Next Frontier in Preventive Eye Care”
- Christine Chang, Director at Artesian Capital, with Rohan Gray, Partner and Co-head of VC at Artesian Capital, and Steve Delnesky, Managing Partner and Co-Founder at Life Sciences: “Medical Technology and Innovation: Shaping the Future”
- Dr. Monica Jong, Head of Medical Affairs North America at EssilorLuxottica, Dr. Aaron Goffinet, Director of Professional Affairs at EssilorLuxottica, and Dr. Rahim Bhaloo, Director of Externship Programs at SUNY College of Optometry: “Seeing the Future: The Intersection of AI, Eye Care, and Public Health”
- Dr. Rudrani Banik, Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai: “The Eye as a Window to the Body: What Clinicians Can See Before Symptoms Begin”
- Dr. Ted Long, System Chief Medical Officer for Clinical Services and Population Health and Chief Executive Officer of the NYC Health + Hospitals Accountable Care Organization, with Dr. Louis Pizzarello, Board Chair of Lavelle Fund for the Blind, Dr. Niki Cottler, Director of Eye & Vision Services at Health + Hospitals, Gotham Health Gouverneur, and Dr. Joy Harewood, Associate Clinical Professor at SUNY College of Optometry: “Integrating Eye Care into Population Health: The Growing Role of FQHCs and Community Health Centers”
- Dr. Lisa Ostrin, Dean for Graduate Studies and Research at SUNY College of Optometry, with Dr. Alexandra Benavente-Perez, Research Professor at SUNY College of Optometry, Dr. Xiaoying Zhu, Lead Clinician for Myopia Management at SUNY College of Optometry, and L. Wayne Spencer, Director of the Clinical Vision Research Center at SUNY College of Optometry: “Seeing Further: Myopia Research from Molecules to Meaningful Outcomes”
Registration and the full agenda are available here.
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