Just one year after being named Colorado’s Young Optometrist of the Year, Jenna Moran, OD, FOVDR, is stepping into another role: president of the Colorado Optometric Association.
Inaugurated in July, Dr. Moran brings to the position a perspective she hopes other young optometrists will recognize in themselves. Not that long ago, the idea of taking on a leadership position was intimidating to her, too.
Now, after years of involvement with the COA, she wants other young ODs to understand that they don’t have to wait until they are further along in their careers to have something valuable to contribute.
“Even if you’re bringing a younger perspective, that’s a perspective the profession needs,” she says. “We want to hear about the hopes and dreams of our younger doctors.”
FINDING HER COMMUNITY
Dr. Moran’s interest in optometry began while she was an undergraduate at the University of Kansas, where a part-time job introduced her to vision therapy. She continued exploring that interest at Southern College of Optometry before graduating in 2017.
Originally from Kansas, Dr. Moran knew that she wanted to make her way to Colorado, a state she had grown to love while visiting an aunt and uncle who lived there. An opportunity at Highline Vision Center gave her that chance and allowed her to continue developing her interests in vision therapy with the mentorship of practice owners Jennifer Redmond, OD, FOVDR, and Jeri Schneebeck, OD, FOVDR.
The move also meant building a new community. Dr. Moran and her husband had relocated from Tennessee without an established network of friends or family nearby. Her colleagues helped fill that gap, becoming mentors, friends and a professional support system.
Today, Dr. Moran continues to practice at Highline Vision Center, seeing patients from infancy through their geriatric years. Primary care is the foundation of her work, while pediatrics, vision therapy and specialty contact lenses allow her to pursue several clinical interests. Dr. Redmond and Dr. Schneebeck also modeled another part of being an optometrist: both were involved with the COA and showed Dr. Moran the value of involvement beyond the exam room.
Dr. Moran left optometry school understanding that laws and regulations help define how optometrists can practice. As she became established in Colorado, she wanted to better understand that process and have a voice in it.
MAKING ROOM FOR YOUNGER VOICES
Dr. Moran first connected with the COA through its young professional community. After completing a leadership program, she joined the COA Board of Trustees in 2021, representing doctors in her district and becoming more involved in issues affecting Colorado optometrists.
After three years, she was elected to the executive board and became secretary-treasurer in summer 2024. Today, she leads the COA as president for 2026-2027.
The deeper she became involved with the COA and American Optometric Association, the more she understood the work happening outside the exam room to support the profession. She also saw how relationships with legislators and colleagues built over years can become important as issues affecting optometry arise. Being one of the younger people in those conversations became an asset rather than something that made her feel less prepared.
“It was fun to be able to be a younger voice at that moment,” she says, particularly in conversations about where optometry is headed and what the profession looks like for doctors entering practice today.
By the time she became president, years of listening, asking questions and learning from colleagues had prepared her for the position. “The people in our organization are an awesome family unit,” she says. “We have mentors, can ask questions and are not alone any step of the way.”
That experience is shaping one of her priorities as president: making organized optometry feel more accessible to doctors in their first few years of practice.
“Those first few years are where you build the confidence to communicate for your patients,” she says. “My hope for my presidency is to empower more young optometrists to step in, speak to their training and feel more confident being part of organized optometry.”
GET INVOLVED
Getting involved doesn’t have to mean running for a board position, Dr. Moran says. Attending association events, conferences and social gatherings can help young ODs build relationships with colleagues who can become resources throughout their careers.
“Don’t skip the meetings and the social stuff,” she says. While continuing education is readily available online, “you can’t put a price tag on how valuable those relationships are for both your personal and professional development.”
It’s advice Dr. Moran once needed herself. As a student at SCO, she served as president of the school’s vision development club. One day, she asked professor Glen Steele, OD, FCOVD, FAAO, how he had accomplished so much throughout his career.
His advice was simple: when someone asks you to do something, say yes. Keep saying yes and, one day, you may look back and be surprised by where those opportunities have taken you.
Years later, as Dr. Moran begins her term as COA president, that message has stayed with her.
“Don’t let anything intimidate you,” she says. “Go for it whenever you can.”
