Stephen E. Morse, OD, MPH, Ph.D., is an associate professor of ophthalmology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and director of the Feldberg Center for Vision Rehabilitation at Storm Eye Institute.

Dr. Morse came to MUSC in 1998 after four years at the University of Houston College of Optometry, where he served as a tenured associate professor. He was previously a clinical preceptor and adjunct assistant professor at both the Pennsylvania College of Optometry and the Southern California College of Optometry. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tarkio College and a doctor of optometry degree from the Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago. In 1984, he received a master’s of public health from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health, and a PhD in physiological optics from the University of Houston College of Optometry in 1991. Dr. Morse is a licensed optometrist and is certified by the National Board of Examiners in Optometry and the International Association of Boards of Examiners in Optometry.

In 1995, Dr. Morse retired from active duty with the United States Army. During his Army career, he was an infantry officer in Vietnam and later served as a clinical optometrist at Fort Jackson, Fort Lee and Fort Knox. Dr. Morse’s last position with the Army was as a scientist and principal investigator in the Vision Science Branch at the U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory at Fort Rucker, Alabama. He is also a Bronze Star recipient.

Dr. Morse holds memberships in several professional and scientific societies, including the American Academy of Optometry, the American Public Health Association, and the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired. He has served as a reviewer for peer-reviewed journals such as the American Journal of Ophthalmology, Vision Research and Optometry & Vision Science. He has an active research laboratory at the Storm Eye Institute at MUSC, and has over 50 scientific publications in the areas of eye movements, refractive error development, and low vision.

Dr. Morse is currently focusing his efforts with Storm Eye Institute’s Feldberg Center for Vision Rehabilitation where he assists low vision patients achieve optimal results with the use of assistive equipment and devices.

 More on Dr. Morse