Our Faculty and Staff

Rachel A. “Stacey” Coulter, OD, MS, received a bachelor’s degree from Duke University in 1983 and a Doctor of optometry degree in 1991 from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO). She completed a residency in Pediatric Optometry and Vision Therapy at PCO in 1992. She received an MS degree in Exceptional Student Education from Nova Southeastern University (NSU) in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 2012. 

Dr. Coulter is a Professor of Optometry at NSU, where she teaches in the classroom, clinic, and residency program and is active in clinical research in Pediatric Optometry. She oversees the Vision in Neurodevelopmental Disorders Service that provides vision care to children and adults with autism, ADHD, and other neurodevelopmental disorders. 

Dr. Coulter is a Fellow of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development and the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) and a Diplomate in Binocular Vision, Perception, and Pediatric Optometry. Dr. Coulter currently serves as President of the American Academy of Optometry Foundation, on the Board of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development, and the Advisory Committee of the National Center for Children's Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness. She is a frequent presenter and has lectured throughout the United States, as well in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, India, and China. 

Throughout her career, Dr. Coulter has been interested in vision and its link to child development and learning. She served as a Principal Investigator in the NIH-funded clinical trials, Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial (CITT) and CITT-Attention Reading Trial, as well as for multiple other research studies. She has published multiple articles and book chapters. Her research on vision care for children with autism was presented at the International Meeting for Autism Research. Dr. Coulter has been recognized by multiple awards including NSUCO Professor of the Year, Vision Monday’s Most Influential Women in Optical – Outstanding Mentor,and the NECO Behavioral Scholar-in-Residence. In 2016, she received the American Academy of Optometry’s Feinbloom Award, the highest clinical award for her contributions to clinical excellence.

Dr. Coulter has held multiple administrative appointments and leadership positions including Chief of the Pediatric Optometry service (1995 -1999), and Chair of the Optometric Sciences department (1998- 2011). She also served as Chair of the AAO Binocular Vision, Perception and Pediatric Optometry Section and the Children's Vision Committee of the Florida Optometric Association. She currently serves on the Advisory Board for the Duke University Institute for Brain Sciences and the Advisory Committee for the National Center for Children's Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness. As an officer of the American Academy of Optometry Foundation, she supports fundraising to advance optometric research and education.