The first part of this talk will focus on lessons learned from overseeing 25 years of optical design projects (both academic and commercial). For example, many specification conflicts are not obvious when the project is initiated, and it can take quite a while before they are realized (impacting both cost & schedule). Identifying these common problems early-on helps keep things running smoothly on the project. Guidelines for setting up successful individual (and group) student projects along with methods to scale up to large class sizes will also be discussed.

The second part of this talk will focus on freeform gradient-index (GRIN) materials: a new type of freeform optic. Gradient index (GRIN) optical systems are not new, having been studied for over 50 years. However, most of this effort was focused on optical designs using conventional GRIN materials (e.g. axial or radial gradients) with rotationally invariant index of refraction profiles. Current interest in freeform surfaces has shown that they enable irregular system geometries with high optical performance by leveraging rotational variance. Recent advancements in the fabrication of gradient-index (GRIN) materials with additive manufacturing have enabled a new type of freeform optic using a freeform gradient index (F-GRIN) material.