Fred Farias III, OD.
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ST. LOUIS—Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has appointed American Optometric Association (AOA) trustee Fred Farias III, OD, as vice chairman of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Since being created by the Texas Legislature in 1965, the board has worked to achieve excellence for the college education of Texas students by providing leadership and coordination for the state’s higher education system, according to AOA. Dr. Farias was elected to the AOA board in 2017, and is chief executive officer of 20/20 Vision Care in McAllen, Texas.

He is a former president of the Texas Optometric Association and the Rio Grande Valley Optometric Association. Additionally, he is a member of The University of Texas (UT) Development Board, UT System Chancellor's Executive Committee, and the UT Longhorn Athletic Advisory Council, and is a former member of the UT College of Communication Advisory Council and the co-founder of the UT Hispanic Alumni Committee of the Texas Exes.

Dr. Farias received his Doctor of Optometry from Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, Tenn.

Texas is home to two colleges of optometry, the University of Houston and the University of the Incarnate Word Rosenberg School of Optometry.