Board of Trustees
AMANDA BREWER-LORD, OD ’97, CHAIR | SPEEDWELL, VA
is a graduate of King College in Bristol, Tennessee. She received her Master of Science degree in Education from Radford University in Virginia. Upon graduation from SCO, Dr. Brewer-Lord established Wythe Eye Associates, a private practice with three locations in Virginia. She has been active in leadership positions in optometry, including serving on the Board of Trustees for the Virginia Optometric Association, the Board of Directors of the Banzai Consortium, the Board for TLC Laser Eye Center, InfantSEE Regional Liaison, and as SECO Logistics Committee Vice-Chair, among others. At the local level, she has served on the Board of Directors for 1st Bank of Virginia and the Wytheville Chamber of Commerce. Her awards include being named Virginia’s Young OD of the Year and numerous Clinic of the Year awards in Wythe County.
ALLAN BARKER, OD’75 | WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, NC
graduated from Southern College of Optometry in 1975. A member of the American Optometric Association and the North Carolina Optometric Society, he served as North Carolina Optometric Society President in 2009-2010. He also served as the American Optometric Association Charity Foundation Board President 2016-2017. Dr. Barker has also served as a VOSH State Director in North Carolina, on the Essilor Eye Care Practitioner Advisory Panel, and completed the Wharton Chief Executive Optometrist course. He worked at the Olympic Vision Center in Lillehammer, Norway, and is a charter member of the AOA Contact Lens and Cornea Section. He has lectured and published extensively throughout his career, including one of the first studies on hyperopic soft contact lenses in 1977 which was co-authored with Dr. Frank Fontana. Dr. Barker received Southern College of Optometry's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019.
BETTY HARVILLE BROWN, OD, FAAO | EADS, TN
was born in Somerville, Tennessee and graduated from Fayette Ware High School as Valedictorian (4.0 GPA) in 1975. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin in 1979. She attended Indiana University College of Optometry in Bloomington, Indiana and earned her Doctor of Optometry degree in 1983. Dr. Harville returned to Tennessee as the state’s first female African-American optometrist. In 1984, she was hired as an Instructor at SCO. In 2001, Dr. Harville became the first female Optometrist to achieve the title of full Professor at SCO and was also the first female African American Professor of Optometry in the U.S. She retired in August 2020 after teaching at SCO for 36 years.
DAVID A. COCKRELL, OD ’81 | STILLWATER, OK
completed his Bachelor’s degree in Zoology at Oklahoma State University and his Doctor of Optometry degree from SCO in 1981. He and his wife, Cherry Cockrell, OD ’81, opened their practice in Stillwater, Oklahoma, which became known as Cockrell Eyecare Center. In addition to serving as AOA President, Dr. Cockrell is a Diplomate and Past Chairman of the American Board of Optometry. Since 1996, he has served as a member of the Oklahoma State Board of Examiners in Optometry and in all of the organization’s officer positions, including president. He is also a past president of the Oklahoma Association of Optometric Physicians and the Southwest Council of Optometry. A Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, he is a member of the American Public Health Association’s Vision Section. A founding board member of Optometry Cares, he has received a number of awards at the local, regional, and national levels, including Heart of America’s OD of the Year award and an honorary degree from SCO. Dr. Cockrell was recently named the Chair of the Health Care Alliance for Public Safety.
ARTHUR R. DAMPIER, OD '97 | RIDGELAND, MS
graduated from Xavier University New Orleans in 1992 and went on to SCO in Memphis where he received his Doctorate of Optometry in 1997. Following graduation, Dr. Dampier started a private practice in West Point, MS. After 3 years of practice, he realized the importance of practicing where he wanted to live, so he moved back to his hometown of Jackson, MS, and started a commercial practice at Wal-Mart. He grew his independent commercial practice over the next 7 years. The practice grew to serving over 4000 pts yearly and Dr. Dampier was named Wal-Mart Doctor of the Year in MS in his time there. In 2008, realized his dream of private practice and built Ridgeland Eyecare Center, a 3600 sq ft building in metro Jackson, MS. He was named one of America's Top Optometrists by the Consumer Research Council of America for 2004-2005. In 2007, the MOA recognized Dr. Dampier as the Young O.D. of the Year for the state. In 2008 he was elected secretary-treasurer of the Mississippi Optometry Association and was installed at the 2012 summer convention as president of the Mississippi Optometry Association. He was also chosen as one of the Top 40 Under 40 by the Mississippi Business Journal. Dr. Dampier was also recognized as the James Brownlee O.D. of the Year for MS in 2015 and was nominated for O.D. of the Year for the South at SECO that year. He has served as the Past President of the MS NOA and the MS Vision Foundation. He currently serves Secretary-Treasurer/Vice Chair of the MS State Board Of Optometry and he is in his second term. Dr. Dampier is currently President and Director of Ridgeland Eyecare Center, Inc. in Ridgeland, MS. Ridgeland Eyecare has one associate doctor and employs 10 full-time staff. REC is focused mostly on primary care optometry with an emphasis on specialty contacts, co-managing LASIK patients and high end eyewear.
ANITA DAVIS, PHD | HARTFORD, CT
is a native Memphian with a passion for social justice issues. She has been a member of the Rhodes community for over 20 years and has held various leadership positions. She was the inaugural director of the African American Studies Program for five years, and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs for seven years (2008-2015) where her responsibilities included accreditation, curriculum and program assessment, faculty evaluation and mentoring, and supporting diversity and inclusion initiatives. For the past ten years, Dr. Davis has continued research on student perceptions of the campus climate surrounding diversity and inclusion. Prior to that, her work focused on the role of social support in the lives of adolescent mothers. She teaches courses in Psychology and Urban Studies including intercultural knowledge and competence, multicultural counseling, and research methods. Dr. Davis is currently on a three-year leave of absence from Rhodes College as she fulfills duties as the Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the Associated Colleges of the South (ACS), a consortium of sixteen nationally recognized colleges and universities. Her primary responsibilities are to support member institutions in their collective and individual efforts to advance diversity and inclusion goals on their campuses and in their communities. Dr. Davis has worked with numerous colleges and non-profit organizations on diversity and inclusion initiatives. She is a member of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education.
VICKI FARMER | HEBER SPRINGS, AR
is the Executive Director of the Arkansas Optometric Association. A graduate of Arkansas State University, she is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute of Organization and is a Certified Association Executive. He is a past president of the International Association for Optometric Executives and has chaired Arkansans for Healthy Eyes, a ballot question committee formed to protect Act 579 of 2019.
CHARLES GLASER, OD '74 | NEW ORLEANS, LA
a native New Orleanian, graduated from Louisiana State University in 1970 before earning his doctor of optometry degree from Southern College of Optometry in 1974. He then joined the Ophthalmology Department of Ochsner Clinic, treating patients and teaching resident doctors about the theory and practice of contact lens fitting. In 1976, Dr. Glaser opened St. Charles Vision’s first office in Boutte, LA, specializing in hard-to-fit contact lens patients and medical management of eye disease. Dr. Glaser remained managing partner of St. Charles Vision until it was acquired in 2018. Dr. Glaser is board-certified in therapeutic medications in Louisiana and Tennessee and is a member of the Louisiana State Optometric Association, the American Optometric Association and the Contact Lens Section of the AOA. Dr. Glaser has been involved in a number of non-profit organizations. After Hurricane Katrina, Dr. Glaser facilitated the donation of over $45,000 in in-kind services and products to the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic, providing struggling musicians with free eyecare, glasses and contact lenses. He has served as President of the Board of Lighthouse Louisiana, as Treasurer and Vice President of Touro Synagogue, and as member and advisor to Lemann Stern Young Leadership group for Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans.
MARK KAPPERMAN, OD '87 | APISON, TN
is the founder of Kapperman, White & McGarvey Eyecare. His practice, now over 30 years old, has grown into one of the largest providers of primary eye care in Chattanooga. Dr. Kapperman has served as president of the Tennessee Association of Optometric Physicians and currently serves as administrator for Vision Source in Southeast Tennessee and Northwest Georgia. He has traveled to Catacamas, Honduras for 16+ years to provide much-needed vision care. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Predisan Health Ministries, a Christian healthcare organization that provides medical services to thousands of people in the Olancho region in rural Honduras. Mark and his wife, Anita, have been married for 32 years. She is a pediatric nurse, but now devotes herself full-time to family and volunteering for several community outreach programs. Together they have raised three children. Their son, Conner, followed in his father’s footsteps and graduated with his doctorate in optometry in 2020.
CHARLES W. KINNAIRD, OD | CHICAGO, IL
has been on staff at the Jesse Brown VAMC since completing his residency in 1995. In addition to acting as an attending in the clinic, he teaches the residents and students in both a clinical and didactic setting. After attaining his Fellowship in the American Academy of Optometry (F.A.A.O.) he became active in the Disease Section and the Illinois Chapter. While part of the Disease Section he held positions as the Chair of the Section, Program Chair as well as the Coordinator of the Annual Photography Contest. Also he has been a member of the Executive Council of the Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Optometry and is a former Past-President of the Chapter. Currently he is the Immediate Past-Chair of the Chapters Committee for the Academy. Dr. Kinnaird is also very active in the National Board of Optometric Examiners (NBEO). He served as a Clinical Skills Examiner from 1999-2011, and now acts as a Remote Examiner for Part 3 of Boards. He also serves as an item writer for the Advance Competency in Medical Optometry (ACMO) exam, and has been involved in the creation of the Injections Skill of the Clinical Skills Exam. He has been an invited lecturer on both the local and national level on various topics of Ocular Disease.
JAMES K. KIRCHNER, OD | LINCOLN, NE
was the founder of EyeCare Specialties, a multi-doctor, multi-office optometric practice in Nebraska. He retired in 2018 as President and CEO of SynergEyes, Inc., an international manufacturer and distributor of contact lenses. He is a Past President of the Nebraska Optometric Association and the North Central States Optometric Council. He is a founder of Kingdoms Harvest International, now known as Global Assist.
JENNIFER LYERLY, OD '11 | CARY, NC
graduated Summa Cum Laude from SCO in 2011 and was named an Outstanding Clinician in her class. A native of Clemmons, North Carolina, she was valedictorian at North Carolina State University. She practices in Raleigh, North Carolina with a focus on specialty contact lenses. She is the founder of Eyedolatry Blog, an eyecare website with a focus on encouraging women’s leadership within optometry, and was named one of Vision Monday’s Most Influential Women in Optometry in 2015. In 2016 she co-founded Defocus Media, a social media management company for private practice ODs, and is the co-host of the popular Defocus Media Podcast. A 2017 finalist and 2018 Transitions Academy’s Brand Ambassador of the Year, Dr. Lyerly has emerged as one of the profession’s leading content experts on best practices for ODs using social media. Dr. Lyerly demonstrates the importance of young alumni promoting the profession of optometry in a positive light. In recognition of her service, leadership, and support of SCO, she was awarded SCO’s Young Alumni Award in 2017.
STACEY MEIER, OD '84 | PHOENIX, AZ
is currently the Executive Director of the Arizona Optometric Association. Originally from Lockport, N.Y., Dr. Meier has an Associate of Applied Science degree in Ophthalmic Dispensing and continued his undergraduate studies at the University of Nevada – Las Vegas before attending SCO. His professional career includes practicing in a surgery referral center, commercial optometry and the owner of Desert View Vision for over 29 years. Dr. Meier has held leadership positions as president of the Central Arizona Optometric Society, Arizona Optometric Association, Great Western Council of Optometry and the International Association of Optometric Executives. He was appointed to the Arizona State Board of Optometry in 2010 by Governor Janet Napolitano. Dr. Meier has received several awards which include Optometrist of the Year by the AZOA and GWCO in 2009.
LYNN SHAW, SR. | MEMPHIS, TN
is Managing Director for Raymond James. He has more than 40 years of experience as a financial services professional and is an Accredited Wealth Management Advisor, and specializes in serving the financial needs of individuals, corporate executives, business owners, medical industry practitioners, philanthropic families and estates, and nonprofit fiduciaries. Along with his duties as an SCO board member, Shaw is actively involved in the Memphis community and his charitable support includes United Way, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the American Cancer Society. He is a member of St. George’s Episcopal Church and chairs their Endowment Committee.
CHRIS WROTEN, OD ’02, CHAIR | DENHAM SPRINGS, LA
completed a hospital-based residency in Primary Eye Care at the Memphis Veterans Affairs Medical Center following his graduation from SCO. After two years on staff at West Tennessee Eye in the Memphis area, he returned home to Louisiana in 2005 to become a partner in the Bond-Wroten Eye Clinics with three offices in southeast Louisiana. Dr. Wroten serves as the Bond-Wroten Eye Clinic’s Chief Operating Officer and supervises its Family Practice Residency and Optometric Externship programs, both of which he founded. He has twice been elected President of the Optometry Association of Louisiana, received a number of state, regional, and national professional awards, and serves on several boards and committees both within and outside of the profession of optometry. He was SCO’s Young Alumni of the Year in 2011. In addition to participating in clinical research, Dr. Wroten has also authored clinical case reports and eyecare articles, lectured as a continuing education speaker, and presented a number of educational posters and workshops at regional and national optometric conferences.
MICHAEL DORKOWSKI, OD, FAAO ‘04 | MEMPHIS, TN
is the Faculty Representative to the Board. Prior to joining SCO, Dr. Dorkowski worked in private practice at West Tennessee Eye serving as Chief of Operations, and was an associate with Visionary Eye Care, an ophthalmic referral center specializing in pediatric and oculoplastic surgery. Dr. Dorkowski presents clinical workshops to practitioners at both state and national optometric educational meetings. Dr. Dorkowski is a member of the American Optometric Association. In the state optometric association, he has served on the Board of Trustees, and Dr. Dorkowski served as Vice-President and President for the West Tennessee Optometric Physician Society.
ANDREW B. MURPHY, ’24 | LINCOLN, NE
is the current Student Government Association President and serves as SCO’s Student Representative to the Board of Trustees for 2022-23. He earned his undergraduate degree in Biochemistry from the University of Nebraska.