IOVS Editor-in-Chief, JOV Editor-in-Chief and TVST Editor-in-Chief
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Meet the Editor-in-Chief-elects (EIC's) for each ARVO Journal — Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS), Journal of Vision (JOV) and Translational Vision Science & Technology (TVST)
Meet the Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS) Editor-in-Chief-elect
Joseph Carroll, PhD, FARVO
VIEW CANDIDATE VIDEO STATEMENT
I chose to become a candidate because I feel I can contribute to the continued success and growth of IOVS. ARVO is my scientific “home” and it would truly be an honor to be serve ARVO in this capacity. I have very fond memories as a student at one of my first ARVO meetings, helping Joanne Angle (who had a broken arm at the time) carry some binders to her office high above the poster hall. She spoke to me about the volunteer nature of ARVO and the need for more involvement from younger members. I decided then to find opportunities to support ARVO. Since then, I have served on the Advocacy Committee, Members-in-Training Committee, Annual Meeting Program Committee (VI Section), and Commercial Relationships Committee. I also participated in the ARVO Strategic Planning Retreat and served on the Advisory Committee for the ARVO Multidisciplinary Ophthalmic Imaging Group. Finally, I served on the Annual Meeting Site Selection Working Group and the Strategic Planning Working Group.
My vision for IOVS is based largely on my own experiences with the journal. I have published extensively in all three ARVO journals (co-authoring 39 articles in IOVS, 5 articles in JOV, and 20 articles in TVST), and I see many areas of opportunity to improve the author experience. I also have reviewed countless manuscripts over the years, and I see a number of areas for improvement of the reviewer experience. Finally, my current service as an Associate Editor for IOVS and an Editorial Board Member for TVST have provided insight into some of the operational and higher-level challenges and opportunities facing IOVS (and TVST & JOV). My initiatives for IOVS would focus on these areas:
Author Experience. Our primary customer base is authors, and we should strive to do all we can to improve the author experience. We need data on why authors choose to publish, input on their IOVS experience, and ideas for ways to improve. Beyond the submission process, I think there are opportunities to further clarify the scope of IOVS vs TVST, which would benefit prospective authors.
Reviewer Retention & Recognition. The success of IOVS depends not just on the quality of the articles submitted, but on the quality of the peer review process. A challenge to this is that editors tend to rely on the same reviewers over and over, which can contribute to burnout. I would like to continue efforts to diversify the reviewer pool and explore opportunities to not just recognize but reward those reviewers who perform numerous on-time and highly rated reviews.
Time to First Decision (the EBM perspective). This is an important metric and requires focused effort to address root causes. For EBMs, the process of finding reviewers can be inefficient (and thus frustrating) at times. As our EBMs are volunteers, we need to pay as much attention on improving their journal experience as we do for authors. One key area of focus would be the improving the functionality and breadth of the reviewer database.
Meet the Journal of Vision (JOV) Editor-in-Chief-elect
Dennis Levi, OD, PhD, FARVO
It would be a privilege to serve as the Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Vision. I have a long, rich and varied involvement with both JOV and ARVO. I was a member of the ARVO Long Range Planning Committee that supported the proposal to start the new electronic journal in 2000. I served on the ARVO Publications Committee (2002-03), and on the “JOV subcommittee” that developed and approved the financial plan for JOV. I served on the founding Editorial Board of JOV, published about 30 papers in JOV, served as a Referee on multiple occasions, and was honored to have been listed in the top ten most cited authors in the JOV-index (JOV announcement April, 2010).
I was elected to serve as the Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Vision in 2012, and served in that capacity from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2017, when my term was up. In that capacity, I worked closely with the wonderful ARVO staff and with the Board of Trustees to reorganize the journal to reflect the increasingly interdisciplinary nature of the field, to re-structure the Editorial Board to incorporate Senior Editors, to integrate it with the other ARVO journals, and to reduce the turn-around time, improve the “on-line” journal and focus on increasing the quality.
I’m a huge fan of JOV, in part because it is open access and always freely available, and because it is an innovative model for on-line publishing. JOV publishes a broad range of topics, has a solid impact factor, and provides some article level metrics. It is very well run, has a distinguished Editorial Board, and the published product is high quality and esthetically pleasing.
My vision for JOV is to ensure that it remains the pre-eminent journal in the field. My goals would be to speed up reviewing and publication times, increase JOV’s impact factor, expand the article level metrics, and work toward a financial model for the journal that is affordable to authors and can be sustained in the long run, and to ensure that JOV continues to be a leader in on-line publishing.
Meet the Translational Vision Science & Technology (TVST) Editor-in-Chief-elect
Roy S. Chuck, MD, PhD
VIEW CANDIDATE VIDEO STATEMENT
I have made a career translating vision science and technology....and am now writing to express my great interest in the position of Editor-in-Chief of the ARVO journal, TVST, for which I currently serve as Associate Editor, as well as guest EIC for our recent crosslinking issue. I'm an M.D.-Ph.D. clinician-scientist with undergraduate training in Engineering Science with emphasis on laser spectroscopy from Berkeley’s colleges of Engineering and Chemistry. I was the student member of the committee to develop what is now Berkeley’s formal Bioengineering major.
I went on to graduate training at Columbia under the auspices of the NIH MSTP, a rare path for an engineer in that era. At Columbia I continued to publish on laser applications, both clinical and FACS FRET to probe T cell receptor dynamics during activation. My path then continued naturally towards Ophthalmology at Washington U. where I eventually became Chief Resident. I next undertook fellowship training at Doheny-USC in Cornea when LASIK was first being introduced. From USC, I went on to my first faculty positions at UC Irvine in Ophthalmology and Biomedical Engineering, during which I received a K08 award in Cornea (another rarity during that time). After UCI, I joined the senior faculty at Wilmer as the Director of Refractive Surgery and Tom Clancy Professor of Ophthalmology. All the while, I was able to maintain a 25-50% time clinical practice and a full laboratory operation.
For the past 12 years I have served as the Chairman of Ophthalmology at Einstein, holding the Henkind Professorship and building what is among the largest clinical departments in the country with a robust research enterprise. Throughout my career, I have been able to steadily publish and patent, with emphasis on development and translation of technology, with several devices on market.
Continuing to work directly to translate science, I serve as a major advisor and NIH/DOD PI for a drug start-up developing an siRNA-based drug for corneal wound healing and nerve regeneration. Moreover, I co-founded and serve as the chief medical officer for a device start-up based on patented smart contact lens-based corneal crosslinking technology, which recently successfully completed human ectasia pilot trial and is in planning for ectasia and refractive phase I/II.
Finally, besides serving as Associate Editor for TVST, I also serve as editor and advisory board member for the NIH-funded Cochrane Collaborative for Eyes and Vision US, as well as chair of the AAO’s Preferred Practice Patterns committee, responsible for updating standard of practice guidelines.
I give you my background to parallel TVST’s recent expansion in scope to include bench modeling, all phases of pre- and post-approval clinical trials, and public health and economic impact. TVST is me…in journal form, and I am in full agreement with and excited by this new direction for ARVO.
In summary, I think I may offer a unique perspective on vision science that may aid in guiding TVST’S growth of its new mission and perhaps even help take it in exciting new directions as the journal's next Editor-in-Chief.
The EICs are elected every five years by the membership-at-large. This position is responsible for oversight and adherence to ARVO's policies and procedures including acceptance and rejection of articles for publication in the journals and for the appointment of the Editorial Boards. At present, IOVS receives about 2,300 new submissions a year, JOV receives over 540 new submissions a year and TVST receives over 600 new submissions a year. All support for the Editors is provided by staff at ARVO Headquarters in Rockville, Md. Honorarium is equivalent to size and scope of each journal. For more information, please contact Director of Journals Jon Mallett, PhD.
Eligibility
At minimum, the ideal candidate needs to be an ARVO member, served on the Editorial Board of the journal of application and have at least three years of experience.
Selection process
The ARVO EIC Nominating Committee will present a slate of candidates to the ARVO Board of Trustees in October 2020, with the online election following in spring 2021. The Editors-in-Chief will begin a transition in June 2021, with the official term of office Jan. 1, 2023 through Dec. 31, 2027.
How to apply - application period closed May 2020
E-mail a letter of interest and a current CV by the nomination deadline to Senior Manager, Executive & Committee Operation Stephen Willie.
About the Editor-in-Chief position
The current EICs are Donald Hood, PhD, (IOVS); Andrew Watson, PhD, (JOV); and Marco Zarbin, MD, PhD, FARVO (TVST).
ARVO’s EICs are elected by the ARVO voting membership every five years. As defined in ARVO’s bylaws, section 7, article 13, the EICs “…shall be responsible for the publication of ARVO's journals, Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS), Journal of Vision (JOV), and Translational Vision Science & Technology (TVST) in accordance with policies and budgets adopted by the Board of Trustees; shall appoint editorial associates as required to assist in the selection of suitable articles for the journal; and shall present an annual report to the Board of Trustees and membership.”
Summary of position
The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for peer-review of all articles submitted to the ARVO journal for which he/she is elected to serve. The Editor-in-Chief selects the Editorial Board who will assist with peer review. The Editor-in-Chief may develop editorial policies that assure the integrity and quality of content and which may be reviewed and approved by the Publications Committee and/or Board of Trustees, in whole or in part. The Editor-in-Chief is the sole entity responsible for final decisions on acceptance or rejection of submitted articles.
Duties and responsibilities
Administrative
- Submits written report to Board of Trustees at least annually on state-of-the-journal and long-range plans for improvement and attends Board Meetings only on invitation
- Submits written report to Publications Committee at least annually on state-of-the-journal and long-range plans for improvement and attends Committee meetings only by invitation
- Develops editorial policies to assure integrity and quality of journal content, which may require approval by Publications Committee and/or Board of Trustees
- Manages ethical and other issues that may arise, in consultation with staff and in line with ARVO policies
- Works within the journal’s approved budget, consulting with staff prior to making decisions with budgetary impact
- Develops long-range plans to maintain, or improve, the reputation of the journal as premier publications in visual science and ophthalmology
Peer review
- Generally manages the peer review of submitted articles using the electronic submission supported by ARVO
- Responsible for final disposition of submitted articles to authors
- Assigns Editorial Board members to assist with assignment of reviewers and who will provide recommendations on disposition of articles, which under usual circumstances will be followed
- Acts as final arbiter if conflicts between Editorial Board members and reviewers occur; decision should be made only after full review of the scientific basis of the conflict, and, if necessary, after appropriate consultation
- Monitors and assesses Editorial Board members in terms of performance and maintenance of highest standards of fairness and scientific rigor and may request removal of Member from Board at any time based on these criteria
- Oversees performance of Editorial Board and reviewers to ensure timeliness of decision making
- Establishes and adheres to procedures for review of authors’ dispute of final decisions.
- Acts in Board Member capacity to assign reviewers for articles in his/her areas of expertise if he/she chooses to do so
- Makes every effort to ensure articles published are representative across the editorial scope, while maintaining standards of quality
- Develops peer-review workflow with headquarters staff who are responsible for implementation within the electronic submission system
Please email any questions to ARVO Senior Manager, Executive & Committee Operations Stephen Willie.