Contact Lens Institute Announces 2025 Culture Award Honorees

Monday, December 15 2025 | 09 h 49 min | News

The Contact Lens Institute™ (CLI) has announced the recipients of its 2025 Culture Awards, recognizing eye care professionals and teams in the United States and Canada who are fostering strong contact lens cultures that enhance patient experiences and support practice growth.

This year’s honorees represent a wide range of practice settings, career stages, and communities. According to CLI, all recipients demonstrate behaviors aligned with insights from its See Tomorrow research reports, which examine factors influencing contact lens fitting, wear, and practice success.

“We congratulate the 2025 recipients, who represent a broad range of practice settings, career stages, and communities across the U.S. and Canada,” said Stan Rogaski, Executive Director of the Contact Lens Institute. “Each honoree exemplifies how a strong contact lens culture can elevate patient care while also contributing to practice growth and long-term success.”

2025 CLI Culture Award Honorees

The 2025 award recipients include:

Sheila Morrison, OD, FAAO, FSLS, FCCSO – Mission Eye Care, Calgary, Alberta
Dr. Morrison is recognized for cultivating a culture of continuous education through regular staff training and hands-on learning, helping her team better understand the role contact lenses play in improving patients’ lives.

Eye Designs Optometry and Visions Optometry Team – Sacramento, California
Honorees include Heidi Pham-Murphy, OD; Thuy Phung, OD; Thomas Murphy, OD; John Baskett, OD; Roman Goals, OD; and Jennifer Fong, OD. Their practices focus on highly personalized contact lens care tailored to patients’ lifestyles, visual demands, and long-term goals.

Joshua Olson, OD, MA – Colorado Eye Center / Sunrise Vision Care, Boulder, Colorado
Dr. Olson is recognized for ensuring contact lenses are presented as an option to patients of all ages and lifestyles, supported by comprehensive staff training.

Scott Samples, FLCSA, NCLEM, CPOT – Dean McGee Eye Institute, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Mr. Samples is honored for his patient-centered approach and for demonstrating the broader, life-changing potential of contact lenses beyond traditional vision correction.

Susanna Tamkins, OD – Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami, Florida
Dr. Tamkins’ work focuses on fitting infants and children with contact lenses following surgery, supporting healthy visual development and restoring sight at critical stages.

All honorees are featured in individual video interviews on the CLI YouTube channel, where they share patient stories and initiatives that can be replicated in practice.

CLI expects to open nominations for the 2026 Culture Awards next summer.

The Culture Awards align with CLI’s broader See Tomorrow initiative, including its latest report, Shifting Focus: Generational Perspectives of Contact Lenses & Eye Care, which explores how Gen Z, Millennials, and Gen X view eye care providers, practices, and products.

CLI is supported by industry members Alcon, Bausch + Lomb, CooperVision, and Johnson & Johnson Vision.

Source: Contact Lens Institute

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