Eyeworld

2010s–2020s SUPPLEMENT TO EYEWORLD | 51 and how that was disparaged and seen as a negative. ASCRS championed it and sought to promote it from the beginning, starting with a symposium at the Annual Meeting on MIGS. "I thought, 'ere it is again. [ASCRS is] skating to where the puck is going to be, not where it is.' at's just one of many examples." Mr. Speares said he is proud at the move- ment physician leadership in the Society has made in passing the torch to the next gener- ation of diverse surgeon leaders who have, through the Society's meritocratic struc- ture, proven themselves and risen through the ranks. "In 2019 I gave a talk about what ASCRS looks like today, what it will look like tomorrow, and what it will look like in the future," he said. "[We will strive to] stay true to our stated purpose and make certain that we provide the best education, the best advocacy, the best philanthropy that we can with the surgeons leading us." A new executive director on the scene e first executive director transition In 2018, Steve Speares took over as ASCRS Executive Director, becoming the second executive director in the Society's history aer Mr. Karcher, who held the position for 37 years. Mr. Speares had a long history with the Society and with several ophthalmic compa- nies before joining the ASCRS team. "Outside of other ophthalmolog y societies, I didn't know much about how other medical societies worked, so when I came aboard, I knew a great deal about ASCRS, but I did not know, for instance, how well we were perceived in Washington," Mr. Speares said. "e thing that jumped out at me was, for a subspecialty society, how much impact ASCRS had had in Washington and, … thanks to Nancey McCann, how well the organization was known among significant lawmakers." ASCRS has always been good at being proactive, Mr. Speares said. "ASCRS leaders could see where the world was heading, … and I think that has continued." He remembered in 2012 a discussion around the burgeoning evolution of surgical glaucoma and MIGS e 2010s and 2020s have ushered in a new generation of surgeon leaders for ASCRS. Parag Parekh, MD, serves as the ASCRS Government Relations Committee Chair, and Zaina Al-Mohtaseb, MD, is the YES Clinical Commit- tee Chair. Source: ASCRS Mr. Speares became the second executive director in ASCRS history in 2018, striving to keep the Society focused on its mission of providing the best education, advocacy, and philan- thropy. Source: ASCRS Mr. Karcher at the 2018 ASCRS Annual Meeting, where he was honored shortly aer his retirement. Source: ASCRS

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