Chief Resident, Sean M. Rodriguez, MD, was selected as a 2024-2025 Heed Fellow by the Heed Ophthalmic Foundation and Society of Heed Fellows. This award is given to candidates in fellowship training pursuing academic careers to "encourage and support education and research in ophthalmology and the ophthalmic sciences."
The Heed Foundation was established by Mr. Thomas Heed and his wife Mrs. Ruth Heed, after both experienced sight-threatening crises during their lifetime. After facing the possibility of blindness, Mr. Heed vowed to help prevent blindness in any way he could. The Heeds were told that the "best approach to the prevention of blindness was to support post-graduate training of promising young eye doctors [and] that the teaching of new techniques for eye surgery and eye research programs were critical in advancing the knowledge and management of ocular disease." Over the past 70 years, 1,100 Heed Fellows have been appointed, and over $11 million dollars have been awarded to date.