Dr. Russell Springer graduated with his Doctorate of Optometry from Southern College of Optometry, Memphis TN in 1997. Opening his own practice, Athens Family Vision Clinic, in 2001, he quickly earned a reputation for providing the most comprehensive eye exams, exceptional customer service, and the largest selection of frames and contact lenses in Athens.  

Dr. Springer prides himself in staying abreast of all the latest technology and offers a plethora of ocular testing to diagnose and treat ocular diseases and conditions. His goal has always been to care for and treat his patients as though they were family; he built his practice on this standard and has continued it to this day.As a UGA Alumni, Dr. Springer, his wife Mary Jill, and their 18 year old daughter Abigail, enjoy the eclectic environment of the Classic City, traveling, and cheering on the Dawgs between the hedges.  He is also a pilot and enjoys flight every chance he get.

Dr. Marsha Beckham is from St. Louis, Missouri where she spent sixteen years in private practice. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from The University of Missouri in 1996 and her Doctorate of Optometry from the Illinois College of Optometry in 2000. Dr. Beckham resides in Colbert, Ga and enjoys spending time with her husband and two sons.    

Dr Beckham specializes in treating a wide variety of eye related issues including fitting of  contacts, management of ocular diseases, pediatrics, and integrating new technology into eye care. Dr. Beckham is committed to providing her patients with compassion and individual attention to give them the highest level of care they deserve. She looks forward to getting to know each patient as family and feels fortunate to work with such an outstanding team at Athens Family Vision. 

Dr. Chelsea Miller earned her Bachelor of Biological Sciences degree from Western Illinois University in 2006. She then attended Indiana University where she received her Doctor of Optometry degree in 2010. Dr. Miller completed residency in ocular diseases at Omni Eye Services of Atlanta in 2011. After completing residency, she joined a private practice in Wisconsin, where she specialized in management of diseases of the eye including macular degeneration, glaucoma, corneal diseases, and post operative care. She is a member of the American Optometric Association and the Georgia Optometric Association. Dr. Miller joined Athens Family Vision Clinic after moving back to Georgia in the spring of 2020. She enjoys getting to know all of her patients and working with them to reach their visual needs and goals. Outside of seeing patients, Dr. Miller enjoys running and spending time with her husband, son, and daughter.

Dr. Chad Poole grew up in Spartanburg, South Carolina and attended Brigham Young University for his undergraduate studies. He became the 9th optometrist across 3 generations in his family when he received his Doctorate of Optometry from Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, TN in 2006. Dr. Poole completed an externship in ocular disease at the Vitreoretinal Foundation, has experience with post-surgical specialty contact lens fitting, and has a special interest in pediatric eye care. He loves to educate patients about their individual eye conditions to be sure they understand all of their treatment options.

Dr. Poole brings 14 years of private practice experience to Athens Family Vision Clinic and East Athens Family Vision. He chose to join our team to practice with state-of-the-art equipment and elite management and staff.

Dr. Poole lives near Jefferson, GA with his wife and two young children. He cherishes every simple moment with his children, volunteers with the youth ministry at his church, and has almost finished his private pilot certification.

Dr. Sejal Patel joined the Athens Family Vision Center team in December 2022. She earned her Bachelor's in Biology from Purdue University in Indiana and graduated in 2014 from the Illinois College of Optometry. Dr. Patel moved from Chicago to Georgia in 2020 with her husband and daughter. They like going on family hikes and traveling to different places.

Dr. Patel specializes in ocular disease management and likes keeping up with the latest technology in eye care. She is a member of the American Optometric Association and the Georgia Optometric Association. Her philosophy is to treat each patient as she would her family. She enjoys getting to know her patients and addressing their individual needs. She is excited to be a part of an amazing clinical family that has kept up with state-of-the-art equipment and stayed at the forefront of all that optometry has to offer.

Mary Jill Springer is our billing and insurance coordinator. Mary Jill is always up to date on current insurance benefits, changes, and filling procedures. She works diligently to ensure that all claims are filed properly and all benefits are maximized. She is a graduate from the University of Georgia where she obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in 1993. She is the driving force to make the best even better and stays abreast of the constant changes with health insurance policies and procedures. 

In her spare time, Mary Jill is an avid tennis player, loves cooking, traveling and spending time with her husband and daughter.

Mandi joined our practice in 2013 as Dr. Springers Optometric Technician. After 7 years working alongside Dr. Springer, she became our practice manager. She loves getting to know our patients and making connections. She specializes in refracting, fitting patients in contacts following cornea transplantation surgery and refractive surgery as well as patients with keratoconus, contact lens fit/care, ocular diseases/testing, emergency cases, patient care and billing.  Her main goal is to ensure all your questions are answered.

Mandi has a husband of 12 years, and they have two boys. She coaches travel baseball and is an avid UGA fan! Go Dawgs!

Kristen specializes in fitting patients in contacts following cornea transplantation surgery and refractive surgery as well as patients with keratoconus, eye injuries, and other cornea problems.   She excels in fitting patients in both soft and rigid multifocal contact lenses.  Kristen has experience working on TV and movie sets fitting lenses for special effects.

She has over a decade of experience and is Licensed by the Georgia State Board of Dispensing Opticians, and certified by the American Board of Opticianry and The National Contact Lens Examiners.

Bio will be posted soon...