The William F. Norris and George E. de Schweinitz Professorship of Ophthalmology
The Professorship was established in 1945 under the terms of the will of George E. de Schweinitz, MD (1858–1938) to honor his colleague, William Fisher Norris, MD (1838–1901), an esteemed pioneer in the field of ophthalmology. Both were graduates of the Perelman School of Medicine, Dr. Norris in 1861 and Dr. de Schweinitz in 1881.
Dr. Norris served with distinction as a surgeon for the U.S. Army during the Civil War. In 1873, Dr. Norris joined the staff of the Perelman School of Medicine as a Clinical Professor of Diseases of the Eye and is credited with founding and developing the School of Medicine’s Department of Ophthalmology, serving as its chairman until 1901. In addition to many journal publications, he was the author of one of the first nationally recognized textbooks in ophthalmology and edited the four-volume System of Diseases of the Eye.
In 1902, Dr. de Schweinitz succeeded Dr. Norris as Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology, remaining in that capacity until 1929 when he became Professor Emeritus. Before specializing in ophthalmology, he practiced at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and was Prosector of Anatomy for Joseph Leidy, MD. During World War I, Dr. de Schweinitz was appointed to the Council of Defense as a Major and, in 1922, became Brigadier General in the Medical Reserve Corps. He often treated President Woodrow Wilson.
Current Chairholder
Bennie H. Jeng, MD
Bennie H. Jeng, MD, is a nationally recognized clinician-scientist specializing in cornea and external eye diseases and an alumnus of the Perelman School of Medicine. He began his academic career at the Cleveland Clinic in 2006 before transitioning to the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), where he rose through the academic ranks, serving as co-director of the UCSF cornea service, director of the Proctor/UCSF Cornea Fellowship program, and as Chief of Ophthalmology at the San Francisco General Hospital. Jeng was recruited to the University of Maryland in 2013, where under his leadership, the Department of Ophthalmology expanded its clinical service from three to 12 sites, grew its research faculty, increased the number of endowments, and recreated its residency program.
Jeng has had a broad institutional as well as global impact. At Maryland, he served as founding medical director of the Multispecialty Ambulatory Surgical Center as well as co-chair of the School of Medicine’s Promotions Reform Committee, and he was actively involved in medical education. Jeng is also a regular surgical instructor overseas, having taught corneal transplantation in numerous countries, including India, China, and Kuwait. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he has been providing international surgical instruction virtually.
After earning a bachelor’s degree from Washington University, Jeng graduated from the Perelman School of School of Medicine in 1998. He completed his ophthalmology residency at the Cole Eye Institute of the Cleveland Clinic, followed by a fellowship at UCSF. He also holds a master’s degree in Clinical Investigation. Jeng has held leadership posts in many ophthalmologic societies, including serving as president of the Cornea Society, president of the Eye and Contact Lens Association, and on the Board of Directors of the American Board of Ophthalmology.
Previous Chairholders
- Harold B. Scheie, MD 1960–1975
- Myron Yanoff, MD 1977–1986
- Stuart L. Fine, MD 1991–2009
- Joan O'Brien, MD, 2010-2023
- Vatinee Y. Bunya, MD, MSCE, 2023-2024