The Optical Society has named Kyle Henry Fuerschbach its 2019 recipient of the Kevin P. Thompson Optical Design Innovator Award for his work in utilizing nodal aberration theory to design, manufacture, and test a functional free form imaging telescope. Fuerschbach, a senior member of the technical staff at Sandia National Laboratories, earned the award granted to a candidate in the early stages of their career for his accomplishments in nodal aberration theory to design, manufacture, and test a fully functional freeform imaging telescope in a fully rotational nonsymmetric configuration, demonstrating freeform surfaces in optical imaging systems. “Kyle Fuerschbach, at an early stage of his career, has had a remarkable influence on the design and fabrication of complex optical systems,” said 2019 OSA President Ursula Gibson. “His innovative approach and achievements are truly worthy of the Thompson Optical Design Award.” Fuerschbach attended the University of Arizona from 2004 to 2008 and graduated with a B.S. degree in optical sciences and engineering. He began his doctoral studies at the Institute of Optics at the University of Rochester in 2008, and received his Ph.D. in 2014. His interests lie in the design, fabrication, and assembly of complex optical systems. For his doctoral dissertation, Fuerschbach focused on freeform surfaces for their use in optical system design and investigated the ability to fabricate and measure this new type of surface. At Sandia, he is focused on the realization of optical payloads for remote sensing applications with an emphasis on developing novel systems that are compact and able to be manufactured. The Kevin P. Thompson Optical Design Innovator Award was established in 2017 and recognizes significant contributions, at an early career stage, to lens design, optical engineering, or metrology as evidenced by one or more of the following: innovative and rigorous research, optical system design with a foundation in aberration theory, development of advanced metrology capabilities, product development, and patents or publications.