Mentoring Vision Research in Oklahoma
COBRE
Department of Ophthalmology
University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
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EXTERNAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE (EAC)

The EAC is composed of five outstanding vision researchers who have agreed to monitor and evaluate the COBRE program. This group will meet two times a year, in Oklahoma in the fall and in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, in the spring at the time of the annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO). A minimum of four committee members will comprise a quorum for the fall meeting in Oklahoma; all are anticipated to attend the spring meeting in Ft. Lauderdale.

The purpose of the EAC is to:

    Critique the scientific progress of the COBRE, including the PJI projects and the core modules. Each EAC member will be primarily responsible for one PJI and one or more modules, although all will participate in the overall review process. The EAC will prepare a written report at the fall meeting. Minutes will be recorded at the spring meeting. Both will be available for review by NCRR program staff.
    Review applications and select new PJIs who request funding in subsequent years (selections will be forwarded to NCRR by the PI for further review and approval).
    Interact with the PJIs and provide one-on-one advice.
    Provide advice and direction to the PI and IAC regarding all aspects of the program.
    Critique the performance of the Principal Investigator.
The fall EAC meeting in Oklahoma City will be structured in a way that the EAC members spend one-on-one time with PJIs and their mentors, as well as visit the core labs and talk to the directors. Formal presentations will be made to the group by each PJI at the beginning of the review and individual discussions will be built on the information presented by the PJI. It is anticipated that the EAC members will require two full days to complete their review, which will include a written report that the PI will include in his non-competing renewal request.

The spring meeting in Ft. Lauderdale will be a luncheon attended by the EAC, mentors, IAC, and PI, during which the PJIs will make short presentations of their work, which the EAC will critique. Prior to the ARVO meeting, the PI will send a list of papers and posters being presented by the PJIs and invite the EAC members to attend. Thus, EAC members can be further involved in advising on individual and program accomplishments. By working closely with the EAC in this informal setting, it is our intention to introduce the PJIs to the peer-review process first hand, where the committee will provide immediate verbal feedback to each PJI in a constructive and instructive manner.

External Advisory Committee Members

Nicolas Bazan, MD, PhD, LSU College of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, Director, LSU Neuroscience Center of Excellence, Professor of Ophthalmology
Area of expertise: Neuroscience, angiogenesis retinal biochemistry, lipid metabolism, second messengers

Sally Atherton, PhD, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA Chair, Department of Cellular Biology and Anatomy
Area of expertise: Microbiology and immunology of the eye

Dean Bok, PhD, Jules Stein Eye Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, Dolly Green Professor of Ophthalmology, Professor of Cell Biology
Area of expertise: Retinal cell biology, retinal degenerations, gene therapy, angiogenesis

Todd Margolis, MD, PhD, Proctor Foundation, UCSF Medical Center, San Francisco, CA, Professor of Ophthalmology
Area of expertise: Viral inflammatory diseases of the eye, ocular immunology

Joe G. Hollyfield, PhD, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH, Director of Ophthalmic Research, Cole Eye Institute
Area of expertise: Retinal cell biology, retinal degenerations, extracellular matrix