Dr. Lynn Cyert named Interim Dean of NSUOCO

TAHLEQUAH Dr. Dalton Bigbee, NSU vice president for Academic Affairs, has officially announced that Dr. Lynn Cyert has been named interim dean of the Northeastern State University Oklahoma College of Optometry.

Cyert assumes the position with 28 years experience at NSUOCO. She has been a professor of Optometry at NSU since 1981 and pediatric clinic chief since 1986.

During her tenure, she has served as associate dean for Academic Affairs twice and also as interim dean of NSUOCO during a previous transition.

In making the announcement, Bigbee indicated that the search for a permanent full-time dean continues and praised Cyerts proven leadership in the College of Optometry, as well as her extensive experience as an administrator.

Dr. Lynn Cyert has previously served successfully as interim dean, and I look forward to her service in this capacity as she leads the College of Optometry until a new dean is named, he said. I anticipate the search process will result in naming a new dean in the near future.

The position of dean of NSUOCO opened upon the retirement of Dr. George Foster in December, following 11 years of service.

Prior to teaching at NSU, Cyert was assistant professor in Physiological Optics at the New England College of Optomery in Boston, and assistant professor of Psychology at Ithaca College in New York.

Cyert has worked actively with Head Start in northeastern Oklahoma for many years and is currently Chair of the Health Services Advisory Council for Cookson Hills CAF, Inc. Head Start and also for the Cherokee Nation Early Childhood Unit. Cherokee Nation Early Childhood Unit recently named her Child Advocate of the Year.

She was a member of the Executive Committee and a Clinical Center Director for the Vision In Preschoolers (VIP) Study, a clinical study sponsored by a $1.8 million grant from the National Eye Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The Vision In Preschoolers Study was a nation-wide study that investigated how best to conduct vision screening of three- and four-year-old Head Start children.

She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and a member of the Oklahoma Association of Optometric Physicians. In addition, Cyert co-authored a paper that received the 2005 Garland W. Clay Award for a significant paper in clinical optometry, A randomized trial of the effect of single-vision vs. bifocal lenses on myopia progression in children with esophoria.

She earned a Doctorate of Optometry from New England College of Optometry in 1980. Cyert also holds a Ph.D. and the Master of Science in Experimental Psychology from Brown University, and the Bachelor of Arts from Reed College in Portland, Oregon.

1/14/2009

Published: 2009-01-14 00:00:00