About Us
In early 2020, around the time of the COVID pandemic, David Portney, Dena Ballouz, and Ajay Kolli (three medical students at the University of Michigan Medical School), met together to build the early phases of what is now The Lens Newsletter. At that time, they had a goal of making ophthalmology research more palatable and accessible to their fellow medical students interested in ophthalmology. Over the next year, their newsletter went from being sent to a few medical students at their own medical school to hundreds and then over a thousand peers around the country and world. Since then, dozens of new team members have played an instrumental role in The Lens’ growth and sustainability. The Lens has expanded its offerings with podcasts and new subsections like The Lens Landmarks, and now offers a wide range of features for its readers. Still, the original mission remains. Our goal is to make ophthalmology more accessible to trainees, both students and residents, in addition to all lifelong learners. We continue to promote the scholarship of aspiring medical students, who function as the primary content writers for all of the work.