Knights Templar Eye Foundation Center for Pediatric Vision Research Endowment
Partnering to Protect Children’s Eye Health
Through its Research Endowment, the Knights Templar Eye Foundation (KTEF) provides additive support to promote a robust research program of clinical or basic research on eye diseases and disorders in infants and children.
In 2023, a $2 million donation from KTEF established the Knights Templar Eye Foundation Inc. Center for Pediatric Vision Research Endowment at the DMEI Foundation. KTEF’s generous gift was matched by the DMEI Foundation and the Children’s Health Foundation of Oklahoma with $1 million each to create a $4 million endowment.
Proceeds from the endowment are used exclusively to support advanced pediatric vision research in the KTEF Center for Pediatric Vision Research in the OU Dean McGee Department of Ophthalmology.
“We are profoundly grateful for this gift from KTEF,” states Jim Durbin, President of the DMEI Foundation. “This was only the second research endowment grant made by KTEF, and it greatly strengthens our capacity to support efforts that advance research into eye diseases and disorders that impact children. Distributions from the endowment will be used to support laboratory experimentation, postdoctoral fellows and research assistants, biostatistical analysis and genetic testing, clinical trials of new procedures or treatments, and the purchase of necessary equipment. Through this type of support, we will be able to accelerate vision research at the OU Dean McGee Department of Ophthalmology.”
KTEF President David J. Kussman notes, “Since our inception, the KTEF has always given special attention and emphasis to pediatrics, with the goal of producing the greatest good for humanity. We are excited to have a research endowment with the DMEI Foundation. Through the research that the OU Dean McGee Department of Ophthalmology is doing, they are making a tremendous difference in the lives of children and helping KTEF fulfill its mission to improve vision through research, education, and supporting access to care. Through their research, they are helping to prevent blindness or restore vision to a child, thereby enhancing the child’s quality of life and allowing that person to become a more productive member of society.”
Bringing Hope to the Next Generation
Tomorrow’s vision-saving treatments depend on the visionary research done today. Learn more about the efforts we are supporting to eradicate pediatric eye diseases in Oklahoma and beyond.