2024 Ezell Fellowship Recipients
By Liza Shevchuk
We are happy to announce that vision science PhD students Pabita Dhungel, BOPTOM, MS, and Vivien Tse, OD, were selected as 2024 Ezell Fellows. Pabita was awarded the Ventura Ezell Fellowship and Vivien was awarded the AAO Section on Cornea, Contact Lenses, and Refractive Technologies (CCLRT) Ezell Fellowship. Congrats, Pabita and Vivien!
"Winning the prestigious Ezell Fellowship twice is an incredible honor. It signifies not only my dedication and hard work in optometry and vision science but also the unwavering support from my mentors and the trust of the American Academy of Optometry Foundation in me as an emerging clinician-scientist. This recognition fuels my passion to further explore and contribute to the understanding and treatment of myopia, ultimately improving eye care and vision health globally." – Pabita Dhungel, BOPTOM, MS.
"I am deeply honored and grateful to be the recipient of the 2024 AAO CCLRT Ezell Fellowship. My heartfelt thanks go to the CCLRT section and the American Academy of Optometry Foundation for this prestigious recognition, and my mentor, Dr. Meng Lin, for her invaluable support and guidance in my journey to become a clinician-scientist and educator in optometry and vision science. This award serves as a powerful motivator, inspiring me to advance our understanding of specialty contact lenses as a treatment to enhance eye care and vision health." – Vivien Tse, OD
About the Ezell Fellowship Program
Named after the American Academy of Optometry Foundation’s (AAOF) founding president, William C. Ezell, OD, the Ezell Fellowship program was established in 1949 to provide support to graduate students enrolled in a full-time program of study and training in vision-related research; which leads to a Master’s or PhD degree.
Each year, Ezell Fellows receive $8,000, and two $750 travel grants in order to attend the Academy’s annual meeting and the Association for Research and Vision in Ophthalmology (ARVO) meeting.
Watch AAOF’s official press release video on Facebook at the button below.
AAOF