January 2026

OPHTHALMOLOGY

OPHTHALMOLOGY GRANT SUPPORTS UNRESTRICTED RESEARCH, INNOVATION

The Department of Ophthalmology has received a grant from Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) to support investigators advancing the field of ophthalmology and vision science.

The unrestricted grant, in its second year of a five-year cycle, has been increased this year to $150,000 from $115,000, in response to potential reductions in federal funding and the foundation’s recognition of the increased importance for discretionary funding. 

The RPB grant can be used at the discretion of the chair to support priority initiatives and collaborations. The award is considered a “badge of honor” and is awarded only to a limited number of departments across the country.  The funding is awarded based on a thorough review of the department’s research activities, laboratory environment as well as the work of the clinical and scientific investigators.

Nicholas J. Volpe, MD, chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and the George and Edwina Tarry Professor, said RPB’s unrestricted support of the department is a powerful tool to fuel the academic mission and research priorities.

“This funding so important because it allows us to support new collaborations, new ideas, things that aren’t available for funding through traditional mechanisms, but that could translate to novel and transformative treatments in our journey to prevent blindness,” Volpe said. 

​Volpe said that RPB responded to challenges in the research funding landscape by increasing the amount of money they originally granted by $35,000.

“This is incredibly critical as Research to Prevent Blindness Foundation is the largest nonfederal funding source of eye research,” Volpe said. “This award allows us to support new innovative projects that can change the vision research.”

According to Volpe, these funds have supported the purchase of new imaging equipment to analyze the retina, the development of an implantation device to measure glaucoma pressure in real-time and improve surgery outcomes, research on furthering our understanding of the pathogenesis of macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, as well as funding for key personnel in the department’s retinal neuroscience program.

RPB is the world’s leading voluntary organization supporting eye research. To date, the organization has awarded grants totaling more than $4.7 million to Feinberg and more than $435 million in total research funding.

​This article was originally published in the Northwestern University McCormick School of Engineering on on January 26, 2026.

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