OPTOMETRIC EXTENSION PROGRAM FOUNDATION INC

The story of OEPF started over 130 years ago, when Dr. A.M. Skeffington, the father of behavioral optometry, was born in Kansas City, Missouri on August 28.

A hero of vast dimensions!

Dr. Skeffington taught us many things…
Vision is a learned skill that emerges.
Ocular discomfort occurs when visual achievement gets to the point of being unsatisfactory or becomes unacceptable to the person.
Through proper training, people can see more efficiently.

OEPF was founded in 1928 by A.M. Skeffington and E.B. Alexander.

E.B. Alexander, was Executive Director of the Optometric Extension Program: The organizational force behind the Foundation and a visionary optometric pioneer.

The OEP Foundation has its origins in a continuing education program developed by the Oklahoma Optometric Association for its members in the 1920s. Optometrists E.B. Alexander (the secretary of the Oklahoma Extension Program) and A.M. Skeffington (“the father of behavioral optometry”) have been credited as having established the OEP Foundation in 1928. The Foundation began with 51 associates and has developed into an international non-profit organization with 10,000+ participants worldwide.

The story of OEPF is, however, not a story of either of the two men. While history will invariably associate these two leaders as an entity within a cause, history will do a disservice to the fact if the impression remains that either, or both, of these men fully represent the Optometric Extension Program in all its diversified aspects, whether academic, clinical, or organizational. Rather, we all represent the combined history and vision of our diversified aspects of operations. Our Clinical Associates are the driving force for our innovations and continued passion, our instructors and lecturers provide expertise and comprehensive education to our participants, and our various editorial and publishing teams throughout the organization work tirelessly to ensure a smooth journey into the future of vision therapy.

OEPF is the only optometric foundation that publishes specialized books and journals for the profession. Four times per year, the Foundation publishes Optometry & Visual Performance (OVP). OVP is a free, international, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the advancement of the role of optometry in enhancing and rehabilitating visual performance.

OEPF has always been built upon clinicians sharing with clinicians, veteran practitioners guiding those new to the profession or new to behavioral vision care. We encourage those with experience and expertise in a given area to write, to lead a study group, or to teach those who want to gain new insights. Research is very important to us, and we promote within the profession the need for quality research in our area of interest and expertise. We strive to demonstrate the efficacy of behavioral optometric care to other professionals, as well as to the public.

The Optometric Extension Program Foundation is an international organization (Organized in the US as a 501C-3 Not for Profit Corporation in the State of California), with offices in Timonium, Maryland.
The main goals of the OEP Foundation are to educate optometrists and their staff in the concepts of clinical vision care, encourage research into human vision and the visual process, provide the education necessary for the discipline of optometry to emerge as an independent profession worldwide, develop a cadre of willing and able leaders for the continued support of optometry, provide access to instruments, equipment, publications, and materials supportive of the discipline of optometry related to the educational mission of the Foundation and educate the public and the professions about the importance of visual health and hygiene, the prevention of visual and ocular problems, an understanding of visual development, visual rehabilitation, and the enhancement of vision and the visual process.
In our 94th Year of providing education and optometric publications, we pride ourselves on having an increasing total enrollment of students and residents in OEPF, participants include optometrists, vision therapists, students, and ophthalmologists, with faculty, and other optometric professionals from all over the world.
With the support of our Clinical Associates and donations, we are able to provide free education to students, residents, and young optometrists worldwide as well as reduced rates to optometrists who are not able to afford the US postgraduate fees. We pride ourselves on offering free practice management advice to practices and a number of our lectures give free training to colleagues.