With great pleasure the Board of Trustees announce the appointment of Paul Sternberg, Jr., MD as the next Executive Vice President of AUPO effective January 1, 2025.
Paul is former Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and Director of the Vanderbilt Eye Institute at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a renowned retinal specialist, who maintains an active academic and research program, studying the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration. He has authored more than 280 scientific articles and 30 book chapters, and received research funding from the NIH, numerous foundations, and industry.
Paul was recruited to Vanderbilt in 2003, after 18 years at Emory University. As department chair at Vanderbilt, the department faculty grew dramatically with great strides in research, education, and patient care. The department received over $100 million in philanthropic gifts.
In 2009, he was named Vanderbilt’s Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer, where he served as executive director of the Vanderbilt Medical Group, a 3000-physician multispecialty practice. In 2014, he was also named Chief Patient Experience Officer. In 2023, after stepping down from these executive roles, he was appointed the inaugural Medical Director of Development.
Paul has a long history of leadership in ophthalmology, highlighted by serving as President of the Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology, President of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, President of the Macula Society, and Chair of the Board of Governors for the ARVO Foundation. In addition, he has served on the Board of Scientific Counselors for the National Eye Institute, the Board of Directors of the International Retinal Research Foundation, the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Academy of Ophthalmology and has been President of the Georgia Society of Ophthalmology, President of the Society of Heed Fellows, and Vice President of ARVO.
Honors received include the Award of Merit in Retinal Research from the Retina Society, the Society of Heed Fellows Heed-Gutman Award, the Founder’s Lecture from the American Society for Retina Specialists, the EnergEyes Award for Mentorship from the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Distinguished Service Award from ARVO (twice), and both the J. Donald M. Gass Medal and the Arnall Patz Medal from the Macula Society. Dr. Sternberg is past Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art in Nashville. He also serves on the Board of Trustees for Leadership Nashville.
Paul is not only a visionary leader but also has outstanding administrative and organizational qualities. We particularly enjoyed working closely with him during his tenure as president of AUPO. Please join us in welcoming and congratulating Paul on his new position.