Faculty, Staff, Students and Community Celebrate Rebranding of CORE; Mural Collaboratively Created in Chicago Receives Permanent Home
WATERLOO, Ont., December 5, 2017—In mid-October, hundreds of the world’s foremost eye care professionals, researchers, students and industry leaders created a mural at the American Academy of Optometry’s annual meeting in Chicago, celebrating the launch of the Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE). During a packed celebration yesterday, the work was unveiled and permanently installed at the University of Waterloo’s School of Optometry & Vision Science.
Formerly known as the Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE), the new CORE name reflects the organization’s evolved focus on advanced biosciences, clinical research and education.
Titled Collected Insight, the 12-foot x 8-foot acrylic mural depicts the complexity and wonder of the eye and vision. Over the course of three days, Academy 2017 attendees donned protective lab coats and added their own artistic strokes to the massive canvas. Los Angeles-based artist John Park then transformed the cacophony of colors and shapes into the finished piece.
“Reaction to the CORE brand has been universally positive, as it better illustrates how we have broadened and deepened our offerings over the past 30 years, while at the same time advancing contact lens technologies and clinical knowledge,” said Lyndon Jones, PhD, FCOptom, FAAO, FBCLA, CORE’s director.
Download High Resolution Images from the Installation Using the Following Links:
CORE partners with contact lens innovators on programs that include materials formulation, care products, comfort initiatives, myopia control, dry eye, drug delivery, and education for both practitioners and patients. In more recent years, it has established a reputation for working with major and emerging pharmaceutical companies, digital technology giants, and academic institutions that value uncompromising independence and adherence to the highest quality standards.
“The Collected Insight mural and tonight’s celebration, attended by so many supporters and friends, shine a light on how success hinges on close partnerships. We have been fortunate to match the insights of our 50-person team with many of the world’s most brilliant scientists and clinicians, together achieving what would have once been deemed impossible,” noted Dr. Jones.
The mural is hung in the newest wing of the School of Optometry & Vision Science, immediately outside its main lecture theatre on the ground floor. The installation event was attended by a diverse group of faculty, staff, students, friends of CORE and members of the local community, many who have worked alongside CORE team members and/or have participated in CORE-led clinical trials.
CORE will begin using the brand on a widespread basis beginning in January 2018. For more information, please visit CORE.uwaterloo.ca.
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About the Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE)
The Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) – formerly known as the Centre for Ocular Research & Education – was established in 1988 at the University of Waterloo’s School of Optometry & Vision Science. Over the next two decades, founding director Desmond Fonn developed the organization from a three-person operation into a thriving hub of basic and applied research, playing a significant role in the early development and testing of silicone hydrogel lenses and the role of oxygen in corneal health, along with many other initiatives related to the performance of contact lenses and solutions.
In 2011, Lyndon Jones was appointed director, and has continued to inspire the organization’s evolution. Today, its approximately 50-person team collaborates with sponsors, agencies and academia on advanced biosciences, clinical research and education, providing uncompromising independence and results of the highest quality. It serves a range of ophthalmic sectors, including medical devices, ocular pharmaceuticals, digital technology and others, with a focus on the anterior segment. For more information, please visit cclr.uwaterloo.ca.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Mike McDougall, APR, Fellow PRSA
McDougall Communications for CORE
mike@mcdougallpr.com or +1.585.545.1815 (mobile)
Aimee J. Lewis
McDougall Communications for CORE
aimee@mcdougallpr.com or +1.585.414.9838 (mobile)