New Head of Orthoptics at UTS

Assoc Prof French steps into the role following the retirement of Professor Kathryn Rose, who had been Head of Discipline since inception of the Master of Orthoptics at UTS. Prof Rose has subsequently been appointed as Adjunct Professor.

As the Master of Orthoptics program at UTS enters its 10th year in 2025, Assoc Prof French said the high-quality and successful school “is really a testament to Prof Kathryn Rose’s leadership and the fantastic academic team we have at UTS”.

“I look forward to continuing to build on our curriculum through ongoing innovation in teaching and learning as well as, progressing our higher degree research program to continue to develop the future leaders of the orthoptic profession,” she said.

Internationally Regarded

An internationally regarded researcher and a long-standing teacher, Assoc Prof French’s research in ophthalmic epidemiology and eye healthcare services focusses on refractive errors, paediatric eye conditions, vision screening, and neuro-ophthalmology, including stroke.

Her seminal work investigating risk factors for myopia development (short-sightedness) found strong longitudinal evidence that the development of myopia is associated with children spending less time exposed to high light levels in the outdoor environment and disproportionately high time in intense study and near work. These findings led to a series of successful intervention trials, notably in Guangzhou and Taiwan, to increase the amount of time children spend outdoors to prevent the development of myopia. Recommendations to promote increased time spent outdoors to prevent myopia have since been adopted broadly, including by the Royal Australian New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (RANZCO).

Assoc Prof French led the multidisciplinary team at UTS that conducted the 2019 evaluation of the NSW Statewide Eyesight Preschooler Screening (StEPS) Program commissioned by NSW Health. Findings from the evaluation have since informed Vision 2020 for adoption of the National framework for vision screening for 3.5-5-year-olds which received in principal support at the 2022 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) and is strongly being advocated for implementation by the Australian Government.

A teacher of health and orthoptic students at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels of study, Assoc Prof French had a leading role in the design of the UTS Orthoptics Curriculum and has worked on numerous teaching and learning projects including the UTS Enhancing Courses project. In 2021, she received a Learning and teaching award for individual teaching (high commendation).

A Lasting Legacy

Professor Kathryn Rose has built a lasting legacy, having led international research on the development of vision and refractive errors in children and adolescents. She has combined her clinical and research skills to focus on ophthalmic epidemiology and childhood vision. With a passion for paediatric eye care, Prof Rose has extensively researched the development of ocular structures and functions, particularly the development of myopia and other refractive errors, as well as vision screening in children, with a focus on prevention and evidence-based practice in eye health care.

Prof Rose has worked collaboratively with a number of national and international research groups, in particular the Centre for Vision Research, University of Sydney, where she has played a leading role as a Chief Investigator (CI), taking major responsibility for formulating and designing projects with ongoing support from the National Health and Medical Research Council. Projects have included the Sydney Myopia Study of over 4,000 school children and its follow-up studies, the Sydney Adolescent Vascular and Eye Study, and the Gene-Environment Interactions in Myopia Study. The success of these studies led to a role as a consultant to the World Health Organization for the Refractive Error in School Children studies – pioneering international multi-centre studies of myopia prevalence and progression carried out under the aegis of the Vision 2020 program. She was also CI on the Sydney Paediatric Eye Disease Study, and another study examining the effects of mobile phone use in older persons, the effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation from long-term mobile phone use on vision and hearing.

Prior to establishing the UTS Masters of Orthoptics program, Prof Rose was Head of Discipline (Orthoptics) at the University of Sydney. She retired from that role in March 2024.

Mara Giribaldi, Associate Lecturer and UTS Orthoptics External Liaison, acknowledged the achievements of Prof Rose and said she looked forward to seeing the School’s next chapter unfold.

“As a proud member of the dynamic UTS Orthoptics team, I am excited about the future of our field under the leadership of Assoc Prof Amanda French,” she said.

“This marks a new chapter for Orthoptics at UTS, building on a rich and successful history shaped by the leadership of Prof Kathryn Rose, whose dedication and expertise have been instrumental in the discipline’s growth and success since its inception at UTS. With such a strong foundation, I am confident that the profession of UTS Orthoptics will continue to thrive and evolve under Assoc Prof French’s guidance. I look forward to the opportunities ahead, and the continued advancement of our field, as we work together to shape the future of Orthoptics at UTS.”