E. Ronald Salvitti, M.D.
President and Director, Southwestern Pennsylvania Eye Center Class of 1959
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r. E. Ronald Salvitti has been in the practice of ophthalmology since 1973. He is the founder and medical director of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Eye Center. Salvitti has been an innovator in the field of ophthalmic surgery, designing intraocular lenses for cataract surgery that were widely used nationally in the early 1990s. He also continues to work as a consultant with many research and development staffs of the country’s leading companies, contributing to the development of cataract instrumentation technology. Because of his contributions to the field, he is frequently sought out to coordinate various eye surgery courses available to his peers. In 2005, Salvitti and four nationally and internationally known surgeons performed live surgery from the Eye Center, which was broadcast to the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery conference in Washington, D.C. He continues to remain strongly committed to his work, and his goal is to accept change and to be more knowledgeable each day. While attending W&J, Salvitti was a four-year letterman for the W&J basketball team. (He is a member of the W&J Athletic Hall of Fame.) Salvitti remembers the College as a place where academics superseded athletics. Both, however, required hard work and perseverance. “W&J has a great interest in preparing students for their career objectives,” Salvitti says. “I had many friends who were students and who were working toward the same goals as I. That helped me strive for excellence, stay committed, and adopt a good work ethic.” Dr. Homer Porter, professor of biology, was Salvitti’s favorite faculty member. He knew the student athletes and respected the additional time needed to be a Division III athlete. He encouraged participation in varsity athletics along with academic excellence. As a student, Salvitti particularly appreciated the balance of arts, sciences, and humanities courses that he received at W&J, a balance that provided the foundation for everything that he has done. Today, Salvitti sees students at W&J who are passionately committed to their goals and at the same time enjoying the college community experience.
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