FERV is grateful to its generous and loyal alumni and friends, corporations, foundations and organizations that provide the financial assistance so vital to the UHCO-FERV mission. Each year, gifts from hundreds of alumni and friends sustain us and are the heart of the Foundation. From student scholarships and innovative research endeavors to state-of-the-art facilities, FERV aids in keeping UHCO a top tier optometric institution and recruiting the highest caliber students.
WHERE TO INVEST
The Earl L. Smith III Research Professorship
This endowed professorship in FERV honors Dr. Earl L. Smith and his remarkable career as a globally acclaimed scientist and professor. His work in myopia is radically changing how vision care practitioners help children see the world.
To read more about Dr. Smith’s legacy and give today, please click here.
Planned Giving
Leave a legacy. Please remember FERV in your will. All it takes is a quick phone call to your lawyer to add a charitable gift to your will. To leave a gift to FERV in your will, simply share this sentence with your attorney or financial planner: “I bequeath $____ or ______% of my estate to the Foundation for Education and Research in Vision (FERV), 4401 Martin Luther King Blvd., Houston, Texas 77204.”
If you need additional information, please contact Michele Luman, FERV Manager, at ferv@central.uh.edu.
Scholarship Support
Your investment in scholarships provides resources to attract and retain bright students. This allows students to focus more on their studies and worry less about student loan debt. Invest a minimum of $30,000 and start a scholarship endowment in your name, honor a family member or raise funds with others in your practice and name it after the practice. You can give an outright gift or pledge it over five years. For example, a $30,000 pledge will cost you just $500 a month over 60 months. And, if you are partnering with someone else to invest, it will cost you just $250 a month. The dividends will allow students to receive scholarships in your honor. Or, invest in a graduate student scholarship endowment starting at a minimum investment of $20,000 and this can also be pledged over five years.
Faculty Support
Your investment will help us recruit and retain the top minds in the field and enhance the brand value of the College. A named professorship in FERV is $250,000 and this may be pledged over five years.
Excellence Fund
The FERV – Dean’s Excellence Fund is an unrestricted fund that allows the Dean to respond and react to urgent and immediate needs. These include:
- Equipment and technological needs
- Recruitment and retention of exceptional faculty in critical or emerging areas
- Academic opportunities for meritorious students
- Community partnerships
- Innovative research
- New and underfunded programs
- Special projects
Community Clinics
Our community clinics in Houston, Dallas, and Fort Worth provide eye care to underserved patients who have limited financial means. Your gifts will also support UHCO’s Mobile Eye Institute, patient education programs and vision screenings.
Research
Research changes the way we diagnose, treat, and manage vision and eye care. Your investment will help us provide critical infrastructure ranging from laboratory equipment to stipends for research assistants.
Continuing Education
UHCO annually provides continuing education to over 2,000 optometrists from Texas and around the nation. Your investments will reduce registration fees, defray travel expenses, provide honoraria for nationally recognized expert presenters and offset the costs associated with event marketing. For events and information, visit UHCO-CE’s website.
Equipment and Supplies
Invest in donating supplies and equipment to our community clinics. This provides care for patients in need and offers practical training for our students.
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