Ronald L. Benner steps down as AOA president, Steven T. Reed takes on role as acting president

AOA President-Elect Steven T. Reed, OD
Image Credit: American Optometric Association

With Ronald L. Benner, OD, stepping down as president of the American Optometric Association (AOA), the organization welcomes Steven T. Reed, OD, as its acting president. Benner cited personal reasons for stepping down and Reed was elected by the AOA Board of Trustees, according to a statement from the organization. Reed will be acting president of the AOA for the next 2 months. Plans to instate Reed as AOA president in June 2024 for a 1 year term during Optometry’s Meeting in Nashville, Tennessee are still intact.¹

Reed was elected to the AOA Board of Trustees at the 119th Annual AOA Congress and 46th Annual AOSA Conference: Optometry’s Meeting in July 2016. He was later elected to the office of president-elect at Optometry’s Meeting in June 2023. Reed is the past president of the Mississippi Optometric Association and the Southwest Optometric Society. In his involvement in the MOA, he served as chair of the Long-Range Planning Committee, Optometry for Progress PAC, the Legislative Committee, the Assistance of Graduates and Undergraduates Committee, and the Nominations Committee. Additionally, Reed was chair of the Board of Trustees at the alma mater Southern College of Optometry and Mississippi’s trustee for SECO International.²

Reed owns and operates private practices in Magee, Collins, and Prentiss in Mississippi and is the co-owner of practices in Clinton, Flowood, Forest, and Vicksburg. He is also a recipient of the 2010 and 2016 recipient of the MOA James P. Brownlee Optometrist of the Year Award.²

References

1. Leadership news. American Optometric Association. Accessed May 23, 2024. https://www.aoa.org/about-the-aoa/bot-announcement?sso=y&ct=5e617bbcabab2b1da6a7996271002fa833e24394c0d9dd282aee020301f75ed4a7eef58c8a02d7a62315d64b621d48110d875b21676d51577358f496ca8cd4b3

2. Leadership. American Optometric Association. Accessed May 23, 2024. https://www.aoa.org/about-the-aoa/leadership?sso=y#Reed