Russell N. Van Gelder, M.D., Ph.D.

Dr. Van Gelder was born and raised in and around New York City. He attended Stanford University, earning his bachelor's degree in biological sciences. Dr. Van Gelder remained at Stanford for his M.D. and Ph.D. (neuroscience) and completed his medical internship at Stanford University Hospitals. He completed his ophthalmology residency at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, and his fellowship in uveitis at the Barnes Retina Institute. 

Dr. Van Gelder served on the faculty of Washington University's department of ophthalmology and visual sciences for 10 years, where he held the Bernard Becker professorship. In 2008, Dr. Van Gelder moved to the University of Washington, where he is currently the Boyd K. Bucey Memorial Chair, professor and chairman of the department of ophthalmology and director of the UW Medicine Eye Institute.

Dr. Van Gelder is an active clinician-scientist. His NIH-funded laboratory has been at the forefront of two areas of research: non-visual ocular photoreception and molecular diagnostics of ocular inflammatory disease. He is author of more than 100 papers, articles, book chapters and books. Dr. Van Gelder maintains a busy referral uveitis practice and is actively involved in resident education.

Dr. Van Gelder is past president of the American Uveitis Society and serves on the American Academy of Ophthalmology as Council vice chair. He has been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the inaugural Becker/AUPO/RPB Clinician-scientist award, RPB Career Development Award, Culpeper Foundation Clinician-Scientist Award, and the Burroughs-Wellcome Translational Scientist Award.

He lives with his wife Suzy on Mercer Island. In his free time, he enjoys skiing, hiking in the Pacific Northwest, and spending time with his two adult children.