

Principal Investigator:
Preeti VergheseThe Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute (SKERI) is an NEI Institutional Training Grant Awardee. The grant was awarded to provide postdoctoral training in basic and clinical science relevant to translational vision research and rehabilitation.
The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute (SKERI) is an NEI Institutional Training Grant Awardee. The grant was awarded to provide postdoctoral training in basic and clinical science relevant to translational vision research and rehabilitation. Thirteen faculty whose expertise spans the areas of spatial and binocular vision, eye movements, strabismus, central vision loss, computer vision and assistive technology will train postdoctoral fellows seeking to specialize in translational vision research and rehabilitation. Research training goals will be accomplished through intensively supervised research projects, frequent and wide-ranging seminars, journal clubs and colloquia, as well as supervised research performance, proposal development and grant writing. Because the vast majority of SKERI Faculty are full-time researchers with no teaching duties and small laboratories, the Fellows experience a great deal of direct interaction with their sponsors. In addition, the Fellows have available to them many opportunities for interaction with the rest of the Faculty, which include basic, clinician and rehabilitation researchers. These interactions are facilitated by the group all being housed within the same building and all working in clinically relevant vision research. The Faculty-Fellow interactions represent all areas of the research process: proposal, critique, performance, and communication of findings through the writing of papers and preparation of presentations, as well as participation in scientific and ethics seminars. Importantly, Fellows are also in frequent contact with each other through organized events, adjacent open work-spaces, and the numerous Faculty-Faculty collaborations. The Fellowship program forms a critical component of the research vitality and capacity of SKERI. Because SKERI is not a degree-granting institution, its investigators do not typically have graduate students. It is widely appreciated within the Institute that Fellows bring in new ideas and techniques to the preceptors’ laboratories. The process of training Fellows encourages Faculty to challenge old assumptions, to develop clear and concise descriptions of why a given research activity is of significance, and to expand the range of approaches to research problems. The T32 Program will significantly augment SKERI’s internally funded Rachel C. Atkinson Fellowship, C.V. Starr Scholarship Program, and individual Fellowship awards from other sources to yield an overall program size of approximately 6-7 post-doctoral fellows.
Publications
People
News
SKERI Scientists Join the IGNITE STEM Fair at Burton High School
On April 18, 2024 SKERI scientists enjoyed the beautiful Phillip and Sala Burton Academic High School campus while offering its students hands-on, experiential, and interactive examples of SKERI’s scientists’ work.

SKERI Welcomes Claire Lilienthal Alternative School Students
On April 13th, 7th grade students from Claire Lilienthal Alternative School visited the Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute (SKERI) in San Francisco. Audrey Wong-Kee-You, Research Coordinator at SKERI, welcomed the students and teachers and introduced them to the institute’s mission of
Catherine Agathos wins Best Poster Award at ISPGR
Dr. Catherine Agathos, a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Eye/Head Movement Lab won a Best Poster Award in Basic Science for Postdoctoral Fellow from the International Society of Posture & Gait Research at the 2022 World Congress in Montreal, Canada.
Haydée García-Lázaro receives FoVea Award 2021 from Vision Sciences Society
The FoVea Travel and Networking Award has the mission to advance the visibility, impact, and success of women in vision science. It is open to female members of the Vision Science Society (VSS) in pre-doctoral, post-doctoral, pre-tenure faculty, or research
Haydée García-Lázaro receives the Elsevier/Vision Research Virtual Travel Award 2021 from the Vision Sciences Society
Haydée García-Lázaro, a postdoctoral fellow at SKERI working at TengLab received the Elsevier/Vision Research Virtual Travel Award 2021 from the Vision Sciences Society
NEI NRSA Fellowship Award Issued to Dr. Natela Shanidze
Congratulations to Dr. Natela Shanidze who was awarded a three-year fellowship from the National Eye Institute of the National Institutes of Health.
SKERI Scientists Present Groundbreaking Research at the 24th Annual Vision Sciences Society Meeting
The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute (SKERI) is proud to announce its extensive participation in the 24th Annual Meeting of the Vision Sciences Society (VSS), held from May 17 to May 22, 2024. This leading conference, taking place in St. Pete
SKERI Postdoc Haydée García-Lázaro receives the Elsevier Vision Research Travel Award
Congratulations to Dr. Haydée García-Lázaro for receiving the Elsevier Vision Research Travel Award to attend the Vision Sciences Society (VSS) Conference.
SKERI Postdoc Christian Sinnott receives the NEI Travel Award
Congratulations to Dr. Christian Sinnott for receiving the National Eye Institute (NEI | NIH) Travel Award to attend the Vision Sciences Society Conference.
Christian Sinnott Joins Vision Sciences Society’s Student-Postdoc Advisory Committee
Congratulations to Dr. Christian Sinnott, PhD, postdoctoral fellow in the Eye-Head Movement Lab for being selected to the Vision Sciences Society’s (VSS) Student-Postdoc Advisory Committee (SPC).