#EBGameChanger Awards

After working in private practice optometry for 14 years, ABO-certified optician Carissa Dunphy, ABOC, is now a marketing specialist at PECAA, where she has a bird’s-eye view of the industry.

“Working as a clinician for so many years then transitioning to a corporate role, the macro-scale of the industry was eye-opening,” she says. “It’s something you don’t give a second thought about in private practice, yet now I see how companies in the industry are intertwined and interdependent.”

Dunphy is the founder of Optician Now, a critical resource for those seeking certification or licensure. She also further connects the industry as the co-host of the Optical Women’s Association (OWA)’s podcast, “OWA Talks.” Her commendable influence earned her a 2022 OWA Leadership Scholarship Award. —K.A.R.

“Believe.” That’s all Jennifer Stewart, O.D., asks.

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The prolific writer, speaker, educator, and Disney enthusiast champions independent practices and advises on practice management, operations, sales, training, sports vision/safety, contact lenses, and emerging technology through OD Perspectives, the consulting/media firm she founded. She also co-founded and serves as chief vision officer for Performance 20/20, a vision performance training facility.

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Dr. Stewart earned her doctorate of optometry from the New England College of Optometry, where she serves as adjunct assistant professor. Her shelves are busting with awards, with the 2022 Optical Women’s Association Emerging Leader honor among the most recent.

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Her mantra: “If you can dream it, you can do it.”

A force within her community, Tyjia Sherman began her professional journey as an educator. Observing the wonder and curiosity of children inspired her to pursue opportunities that allowed her to work toward equity—and she hit the ground running.

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The Opticians Association of America (OAA) recognized her promising abilities as a student and honored her with OAA Student to Leadership Grant in 2017 and 2018. After graduating, she quickly became an approved ABO-NCLE speaker before being elected as chair of the OAA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.

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Currently, she works for Vision To Learn, a nonprofit that provides free eye exams for kids in underserved communities; giving a child their first pair of glasses, she shares, is the most rewarding aspect of her profession.

A sales rep and an optician meet on Instagram: Mikki Collins, a consultant for Catch London by Tom Davies, Karen Walker, & Le Specs in the Pacific Northwest region, and Chelsea Langton, creator and founder of Optician Company and a licensed optician.

The upshot of their meeting? ROWT magazine.

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An acronym for “Reps & Opticians Working Together,” ROWT was launched by the duo as a platform for authentic conversations.

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“I struggled with the way I was seen as a sales rep,” says Collins. “My job title had a stigma surrounding it because of typical pushy salespeople in the past, but I decided I was not going to be that. I needed to find a way to communicate with opticians to gain knowledge from their point of view so I could better connect with my own clients.

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“ROWT began as a video chat on IGTV in a relaxed environment talking about how we could work together, and it slowly transformed into the community and magazine we have built today.” —K.A.R.

Through the intense and continuing challenges of the Covid-19 crisis—and via her platform as the Opticians Association of America President—Dibby (Olivia) Bartlett has been a constant source of support, resources, information, and strategies for opticians.

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Her unwavering passion for the profession of opticianry is undeniable. She has worked tirelessly to promote the role—and incredible importance—of opticians in the eyecare space.

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The industrious Bartlett also happens to be the chief operating officer of Todd Rogers Eyewear, an innovative, independent eyewear company based in Massachusetts.

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Bartlett has been in the industry for 40-plus years, holding various positions as optician, optical manager, marketing manager, and in eyewear sales. She obtained her Massachusetts. Opticians license in 1987 and is ABO-certified. She is also a former adjunct faculty member of the Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology, where she taught optical business. —E.M.

​“Optician About Town” Sheena Taff is the managing licensed optician of Roberts & Brown Opticians in Vancouver, Canada, and an #EyeStyle influencer via social media and her opticianabouttown.com blog. “I utilize my role as an industry influencer to share my unbridled passion for the optical industry and all the creative freedom and diverse opportunities it affords,” she says.