April 21, 2009

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Thomas Norton, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Vision Sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), has been named to the inaugural class of Fellows of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO). Norton is among those recognized for his accomplishments, leadership and contributions to the association.

ARVO Fellows serve as role models and mentors for individuals pursuing careers as researchers and clinicians in optometry, ophthalmology and visual research, and they contribute to ARVO's mission of advancing basic and clinical knowledge and serving as the leading international forum for vision science worldwide.

"We are very excited to offer this new honor to our membership." said ARVO President Todd P. Margolis M.D., Ph.D. "We know that it will galvanize current members and inspire future ones,"

Norton earned his undergraduate degree from Yale University in 1965 and received a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1970. He joined the UAB faculty in 1978 as an associate professor in Physiological Optics (now Vision Sciences) and Psychology.

Norton specializes in research on the causes of myopia, or nearsightedness, and earns funding from the U.S. National Eye Institute.

The ARVO fellows will be officially inducted at the association's annual meeting this May in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. For more information, visit www.arvo.org.

About UAB

The University of Alabama at Birmingham's vision research enterprise is centered in the UAB School of Optometry, which is recognized nationally for its significant contributions to eye and vision care knowledge, and vision science. Founded in 1969, the school is the only institution in Alabama to offer the four-year Doctor of Optometry degree.