LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION honoring Jeffrey H. Stern, Ph.D., M.D. upon the
occasion of his designation as recipient of the 2015 Professional of the
Year Award by the Northeastern Association of the Blind at Albany

WHEREAS, Individuals who give of their time and energies and serve the
best interests of their communities are an asset beyond remuneration and
cannot be sufficiently extolled; and
WHEREAS, Jeffrey H. Stern, Ph.D., M.D. has given not only of his time
and energies but also of his competence, intelligence and leadership and
consequently has been designated for special recognition; and
WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud to honor Jeffrey H.
Stern, Ph.D., M.D. upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of
the 2015 Professional of the Year Award by the Northeastern Association
of the Blind at Albany, to be celebrated at its Annual Visionary Gala,
on Saturday, April 18, 2015, at the Franklin Plaza Ballroom in Troy, New
York; and
WHEREAS, Since 1908, the Northeastern Association of the Blind at
Albany (NABA) has provided comprehensive services and programs to resi-
dents of the greater Capital Region who are blind or visually impaired;
in 2014, they helped over 700 individuals of all ages across 14 counties
adapt to vision loss, maximize remaining vision, achieve their goals,
and expand their independence; and
WHEREAS, This vital organization also offered screenings to over 2,500
children between the ages of 18 months and five years of age for possi-
ble vision problems; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern obtained his Doctor of Medicine degree
in Miami, Florida; he then fulfilled the requirements of his ophthalmol-
ogy residency at Albany Medical Center, and his retina fellowship at
Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City; and
WHEREAS, Before becoming a retina specialist, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern
performed research, earning a Ph.D. in Biophysics from Brandeis Univer-
sity, Waltham, Massachusetts, and successfully completed a post-doctoral
fellowship at Rockefeller University in New York City; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern's research aimed to understand how light
gets converted into vision; he studied the intricacies of the retina at
the University College in London, and at the Marine Biological Laborato-
ries in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, where he met his wife, Sally Temple,
in 1983; and
WHEREAS, In 1986, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern and Sally Temple moved to
Delmar, New York; today, he and his partners, Dr. Michael Radosevich and
Dr. Hao Wang, own and operate a well-established Albany-based private
practice caring for patients with retina problems; the doctors refer
many patients to NABA and are dedicated supporters of this vital organ-
ization; and
WHEREAS, In 2005, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern and Sally Temple co-founded the
Regenerative Research Foundation and the Neural Stem Cell Institute in
Rensselaer, New York, where they focus on how stem cells may impact
nervous system disorders, and in particular, retina and macular degener-
ation; and
WHEREAS, Six years later, the couple's progressive stem cell research
produced StemBeads, which are now used in more than 100 laboratories to
improve stem cell cultures; and
WHEREAS, Together, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern and Sally Temple co-discovered
a unique stem cell present in the human retinal pigment epithelium
(RPESC) in 2012; two years later, they won a substantial New York State
grant to transplant these cells as a regenerative therapy for Age-relat-
ed Macular degeneration (AMD); and

WHEREAS, Currently, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern and his wife are working
closely with several entities, including the FDA, the University of
Rochester, the University of Michigan, the State University of New York
at Albany, and Fordham University to make this monumental clinical study
a reality; and
WHEREAS, In 2013, Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern was the recipient of a National
Eye Institute Audacious Goals Prize to activate endogenous stem cells
for retinal repair without transplantation; and
WHEREAS, In addition to his ongoing clinical research, Dr. Jeffrey H.
Stern is working on a project aimed at awakening dormant stem cells in
the retina for endogenous self-repair and retinal regeneration without
surgery as therapy for macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa;
and
WHEREAS, With him throughout have been his wife, Sally, and his three
children, Rebecca, Samuel, and Joshua, all of whom feel privileged to be
a part of his life and rejoice in his achievements; and
WHEREAS, Rare indeed is the impressive dedication shown by an individ-
ual for the benefit of others which Dr. Jeffrey H. Stern has displayed
throughout his life; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor Jeffrey H. Stern, Ph.D., M.D. upon the occasion of his designation
as recipient of the 2015 Professional of the Year Award by the North-
eastern Association of the Blind at Albany; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Jeffrey H. Stern, Ph.D., M.D.