FEBRUARY 2025 ST. LOUIS, MO — WashU Medicine is proud to announce that Dr. Cynthia Montana has been selected as a recipient of the 2025 Dean’s Impact Award, recognizing her unwavering commitment to serving the underserved communities of St. Louis and advancing excellence in ophthalmologic care.
Cynthia Montana, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences; Director of the University Eye Service
- Email: montanac@nospam.wustl.edu
The Dean’s Impact Awards honor faculty members whose work exemplifies meaningful and lasting engagement with the community. This year, Dr. Montana was nominated by Dr. Todd Margolis, MD, PhD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, for her dedication to equitable healthcare, patient advocacy, and mentorship.
“Dr. Montana is completely dedicated to the underserved in the St. Louis community,” said Dr. Margolis. “She directs the University Eye Service (UES) at WashU Medicine, ensuring that it meets the highest standards of quality and care. Thanks to her leadership, this clinic—where residents train under full-time attending physicians—now boasts state-of-the-art equipment and access to all ophthalmology sub-specialties.”
Dr. Todd Margolis, MD, PhD
Beyond clinic leadership, Dr. Montana has worked tirelessly to secure financing for medications and surgical care for patients without financial means. She dedicates much of her own faculty practice time to serving North St. Louis communities in need, taking on complex cases that others may hesitate to manage due to patients’ challenging social circumstances.
Dr. Montana’s impact extends to education and mentorship as well. She supervises an Ophthalmology Free Clinic, providing vision screenings for individuals experiencing homelessness and economic hardship in downtown St. Louis. This initiative offers medical students hands-on experience in community care, reinforcing the values of compassion and service that WashU physicians bring to their work.
“Dr. Montana does this all with a smile,” Dr. Margolis added. “She truly loves providing this type of care and mentoring the next generation of ophthalmologists. She sets a wonderful example for our trainees and demonstrates the deep compassion that WashU physicians bring to the community.”
Dr. Montana’s work exemplifies the mission of WashU Medicine—to improve health not only through research and education but also through direct service and advocacy for underserved populations.
The 2025 Dean’s Impact Award celebrates her dedication and the transformative role she plays in community health, education, and patient care.
For more information about the Dean’s Impact Awards and this year’s recipients, visit medicine.wustl.edu.
About WashU Medicine
WashU Medicine is a global leader in academic medicine, including biomedical research, patient care and educational programs with 2,900 faculty. Its National Institutes of Health (NIH) research funding portfolio is the second largest among U.S. medical schools and has grown 56% in the last seven years. Together with institutional investment, WashU Medicine commits well over $1 billion annually to basic and clinical research innovation and training. Its faculty practice is consistently within the top five in the country, with more than 1,900 faculty physicians practicing at 130 locations and who are also the medical staffs of Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children’s hospitals of BJC HealthCare. WashU Medicine has a storied history in MD/PhD training, recently dedicated $100 million to scholarships and curriculum renewal for its medical students, and is home to top-notch training programs in every medical subspecialty as well as physical therapy, occupational therapy, and audiology and communications sciences.