Edition 2024

International Optometrist of the Year Award 2024

Susan Cotter is a professor at the Southern California College of Optometry, Marshall B. Ketchum University. She is a pediatric optometrist and clinical scientist with research interests focused on amblyopia, strabismus, convergence insufficiency, and pediatric refractive errors.

She is co-chair of the Pediatric Eye Disease Investigator Group (PEDIG), a clinical research network funded by the National Eye Institute (NIH/NEI), and has held leadership roles in several large-scale studies such as MEPEDS, CLEERE, CITT, and CITT-ART.

She began her presidency at the American Academy of Optometry in November 2022. She is part of the Scientific Office of the World Society of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (WSPOS) and has participated in the NEI Strategic Plan (2021–2025).

She has received numerous awards for teaching excellence and holds certifications in binocular vision and pediatric optometry. A graduate of the Illinois College of Optometry, she completed a pediatric vision residency and earned a master’s degree in clinical and biomedical research at the Keck School of Medicine.

Susan Cotter

Pediatric Optometrist and Clinical Researcher

Southern California College of Optometry · Specialist in amblyopia, strabismus, and pediatric visual health.