Your Exton Optometrist

Dr. Tyler J. Alansky joined the practice in mid-2023. He grew up in Downingtown PA and is a graduate of Downingtown West High School. He developed an early interest in eye care in high school after shadowing one of the practices’ founders, Dr. Mark Boas. You may also recognize Dr. Alansky as he worked in our office as an optometric technician during the summers of 2017-2019. During this time, he was further inspired to pursue a career caring for and improving the vision of patients of all ages and abilities.

Dr. Alansky received his Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania. While in college, he was 4-year varsity athlete and captain for the Cross Country and Track and Field teams. He was a Resident Assistant (RA) and volunteer for Special Olympics. 

Dr. Alansky attended Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) at Salus University and graduated with clinical honors in patient care. While at PCO, he was a clinical skills lab teaching assistant, and directed a student teaching partnership with Drexel University medical students, teaching the ophthalmic exam and common eye conditions. He completed his clinical rotations at a medical eye care facility in Thorndale, Pennsylvania, the Pediatric and Binocular Vision Department at The Eye Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a comprehensive eye care practice with focus in vision therapy in Lakeville, Minnesota, an ocular disease site at the Veterans Affairs Hospital in White River Junction, Vermont, and a comprehensive and specialty retina center in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. 

Dr. Alansky has a passion for improving the quality of vision for all patients remains. He especially finds satisfaction diagnosing and treating medical eye conditions such as dry eye, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and other emergent eye disorders. His experience with learning related visual disorders, neuro vision rehab, and vision therapy in children and adults has also allowed him to see the impact this unique type of care can have on a person’s quality of life. He believes that quality comprehensive eye care is essential to overall health and longevity. 

Outside the office, Dr. Alansky is a competitive runner and triathlete, also enjoying snowboarding, cross country skiing, disc golf, and reading. He frequently answers the question of “How tall are you?” (6’6”). He also enjoys spending time with his family of 3 younger brothers. Most recently, he returned from cycling across the country from the west to east coast with his father, the trip of a lifetime. He lives with his girlfriend Erin locally in Downingtown.

Dr. Katherine R. Boas graduated magna cum laude from Franklin and Marshall College with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology. She received many awards and honors within her major, one of which gave her the opportunity to develop a pilot public health project with The Brien Holden Vision Institute while studying abroad in Sydney, Australia. The project sent her to Phnom Penh, Cambodia where she worked to improve access to eye care.

Dr. Katherine then went on to attend The Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University where she graduated magna cum laude with clinical distinctions in primary care and pediatrics. During her time at PCO, she was a board member of the Gold Key International Optometric Honor Society, president of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development, and an involved member of Student Optometric Service to Humanity. She traveled with a group of her classmates to Haiti to provide eye care to over one thousand individuals. She completed her clinical rotations at the Pediatric and Binocular Vision Department at The Eye Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the U.S. Army Optometry Clinic Schofield Barracks on Oahu, Hawaii, a specialty contact lens site in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and an ocular disease site at the Wilmington VA Medical Center.

Dr. Katherine is an active member of the American Optometric Association, the Pennsylvania Optometric Association, the Chester-Delaware Optometric Society, and the College of Optometrists in Vision Development. Dr. Katherine has a passion for pediatrics, the treatment of learning-related vision disorders, vision therapy, and neuro-vision rehabilitation. She is also trained and certified in myopia management, enjoys fitting contact lenses, and can treat and manage ocular conditions such as dry eye, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and macular degeneration.

Dr. Katherine is passionate about providing her optometric services to underprivileged communities. Her most recent effort was a trip with her sister, Dr. Marie, to Guatemala where they provided eye care and eyewear to hundreds of individuals.

When not in the office, Dr. Katherine enjoys spending time with her significant other, Blake, her family, and her horses. She loves the outdoors, hiking, gardening, baking, playing her violin, and traveling.

Dr. Mark Boas is the co-founder and medical director of Boas Vision Associates, LLC (previously Drs. Mark and Suzanne Boas). Along with his wife, Dr. Suzanne Boas, Dr. Mark has been serving the eye care needs of the Exton/Lionville area residents since 1989. Boas Vision Associates is a full-scope, primary eye care practice that offers a full range of services including routine medical eye care, treatment of ocular diseases, such as cataracts, glaucoma, dry eye disease, diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, and the fitting of routine and specialty contact lenses. Of particular interest is the practice's attention to functional vision care needs, myopia control, and the treatment and management of learning-related vision disorders, vision therapy, and neuro-vision rehabilitation.

Dr. Mark Boas is a 1986 graduate of The Pennsylvania College of Optometry in Philadelphia (PCO). Dr. Mark graduated from the University of Dayton in 1976 and received a Master's degree from Pennsylvania State University in 1982. He completed his internships at the Lynch Pediatric Unit at The Eye Institute in Philadelphia, McDonald Eye Associates in Lankenau Hospital in Philadelphia, and Solomon, Snyder, and Klein Eye Associates in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. For the past 18 years, in addition to private practice, Dr. Mark has been a part-time Associate Professor at The Eye Institute's Pediatric and Binocular Vision Service of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University. He is past president of the Pennsylvania Optometric Association and just completed 22 years of service on the Board of Trustees of The Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University.

Dr. Mark and his wife live in Warwick Township, with their son, Robert, and puppy, Sophie. When not helping his patients feel better and see better, he enjoys spending time with his family, fly-fishing, birding, and daydreaming.

Dr. Marie Gwinn (formerly Boas) joined the practice in mid-2017. Dr. Marie grew up in the Exton/Elverson area and attended Owen J. Roberts High School, followed by West Chester University for her undergraduate studies. Dr. Marie went on to attend The Pennsylvania College of Optometry where she received several honors. She served on the board of the Pennsylvania Optometry Student Association and the Student Optometric Service to Humanity. Dr. Marie was a member of Beta Sigma Kappa International Optometric Honor Society and Gold Key International Optometric Honor Society. She was awarded Clinical Excellence in the Pediatric Internship at The Eye Institute and High Honors for the Optometry Program.

Dr. Marie completed a clinical rotation at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center in Charleston, SC where she gained experience managing ocular diseases such as glaucoma, diabetic and hypertensive retinopathy, and age-related macular degeneration. She also completed rotations in the Pediatric and Binocular Vision Service at The Eye Institute in Philadelphia, and at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Okinawa, Japan.

Dr. Marie specializes in dry eye syndrome, specialty contact lenses, medical optometry including cataract co-management and glaucoma, and she enjoys taking care of children with learning-related vision disorders. She is a member of the American Academy of Optometry and the American Optometric Association. Dr. Marie is very involved in the Pennsylvania Optometric Association and serves as the Political Activity Chair and President for the Chester-Delaware Optometric Society.

Dr. Marie is passionate about giving back to the community and those less fortunate through volunteering and philanthropy. She has performed humanitarian work, including vision screenings, locally and in Peru, Haiti, Guatemala, and Belize.

Dr. Marie enjoys traveling, yoga, running and playing Frisbee golf with her husband and their dog, Basil.

Dr. Suzanne Olmsted Boas is co-founder of Boas Vision Associates. She attended High Point College in North Carolina for her undergraduate studies in Biology, Chemistry, and Psychology. She then attended Pennsylvania College of Optometry in Philadelphia, where she received her Doctorate of Optometry degree in 1986. She completed externships at the Lynch Pediatric Unit at The Eye Institute, The Veteran's Administration Hospital in Philadelphia, and a private practice specializing in contact lenses and children's vision, Drs. Gauvreau & Ritter in Westbrooke, Maine. Dr. Suzanne, and her husband, Dr. Mark Boas, opened their private practice together in 1989 and have been providing primary eye care to the Exton/Lionville community ever since. Dr. Suzanne enjoys working with specialty contact lenses and learning-related vision disorders in children. She is an associate in the College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD). She is also a member of the Chester-Delaware Optometric Society, the Pennsylvania Optometric Association, and the American Optometric Association. She & Dr. Mark live happily in Warwick Township, have 4 grown children, dogs, cats, and horses. In addition to patient care, Dr. Suzanne enjoys spending time with the family, traveling, hiking, stand-up paddleboarding, and trail riding.

Dr. Suzanne decided to become a doctor at age 6! This is because her eyes were very nearsighted but she was unaware that it was not normal. Once she got her first pair of glasses, she fell in love with her optometrist and decided she wanted to help people as he helped her!