Dr. Sandra Juarez Fortenberry is the Dean for the University of the Incarnate Word Rosenberg School of Optometry and began her official appointment on June 1, 2022, as the first female Hispanic Dean of an optometry school in the nation. She is part of the founding faculty at the Rosenberg School of Optometry (RSO) and has served as Director of Continuing Education, Director of Professional Relations, and Assistant Dean for Professional Advancement during her time at RSO.
As a first-generation college student, she began her studies at Abilene Christian University and completed her Doctor of Optometry at the University of Houston College of Optometry, where she also completed a post-graduate residency in community-based family practice. In 2012 and 2015, Dr. Fortenberry was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Texas Optometric Association and served on the TOA Executive Leadership for 5 years, eventually serving as President in 2019. Dr. Fortenberry is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and serves on the Latinos En Optometry Board. She was awarded the American Optometric Association Young Optometrist of the Year in 2013, the Texas Optometric Association Mollie Armstrong Award in 2022 and the Texas Optometric Association Optometrist of the Year in 2024.