Vision Problems Found in at least 1 in 4 MPS Students but
Vision & School Performance Expected to Improve with Free Care & Glasses
Milwaukee, WI, October 31 – Consistent with national statistics, at least one in four recently screened Milwaukee Public School (MPS) youngsters were found to have a vision problem. This week about 100 of those children will receive free follow-up care including eyeglasses through a program led by Wisconsin Vision in partnership with Prevent Blindness Wisconsin and MPS.
The youngsters, who live in some of Milwaukee’s poorest neighborhoods, attend the Clarke Street School and Gwen T. Jackson Early Childhood and Elementary School. They were among the more than 500 students who received free vision screenings earlier this month from volunteers at Prevent Blindness Wisconsin and Wisconsin Vision.
“Numerous studies show the poorer the school population, the more children need glasses,” says Darren Horndasch, president and CEO of Wisconsin Vision, the state’s largest independently-owned optical company. “According to the Journal of School Health, children living in low income urban environments have twice the normal rate of vision problems.”
Those troubling statistics led to the start of the free Wisconsin Vision care program at the Clarke Street School in April when the company examined and distributed free eyeglasses to 45 students. Eight of those students were identified as legally blind without the glasses. Now Wisconsin Vision has expanded the program at Clarke and added Gwen T. Jackson. The program at Gwen T. Jackson comes at a much needed time. Budget cuts have eliminated the school nurse, and as a result, the opportunity for children to be screened for vision problems.
“Unfortunately, if there is not a school nurse in the building, typically vision screenings do not occur at the school,” says Barbara Armstrong, executive director Prevent Blindness Wisconsin.
Adds Dr. M. Kathleen Murphy, Health Services Coordinator for Milwaukee Public Schools, “Fewer school nurses makes the most important work of follow-up post screening very difficult.”
Compounding the problem is that Wisconsin, unlike neighboring Illinois, does not require vision screening or comprehensive eye exams for students. Wisconsin Vision and Prevent Blindness Wisconsin are helping to fill the void and spread the message of need.
“Our screenings and Wisconsin Vision’s follow up care provide immediate solutions that make it easy for children to be identified and get the vision care they need,” Armstrong explains. “Left undetected and uncorrected, vision problems can interfere with reading and other visual skills critical to academic success as 80 percent of a child’s learning is related to sight. Children need healthy vision to be successful in school.”
Local Students Notice Improvement in Interest, Grades & Self Esteem
The proof can be seen right here in Milwaukee at the Clarke Street School. Teachers note that a majority of students who received free Wisconsin Vision eyeglasses in April seem to be doing better with their studies and be more interested in school
Wisconsin Vision, Prevent Blindness Wisconsin and educators look forward to similar results after this week. Tuesday and Wednesday Wisconsin Vision will return to the Clarke Street and Gwen T. Jackson schools to provide free visual acuity exams and eyeglasses which will be made on site. Wisconsin Vision is donating the needed lenses, frames and fabrications valued at more than $200 per pair. Brands include Disney and Power Rangers.
“Wisconsin Vision, Prevent Blindness Wisconsin and MPS want to bring to light the correlation between good vision and improved school performance,” says Wisconsin Vision’s Horndasch. “We urge all parents no matter where your child goes to school to screen your youngsters for vision problems before they start kindergarten.”
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Photo/Media Alert: Wednesday, November 2nd, 10a – 1p, Gwen T. Jackson Early Childhood and Elementary School, 2121 West Hadley Street, Milwaukee. Visuals: Drs. of Optometry examining students, students picking out their frames, glasses fabrication and opticians fitting students for glasses. Interviews available with educators, vision care professionals and students.
Media Contacts:
Pam Kassner, 414-510-1838, pam@superpear.com
Darren Horndasch, Wisconsin Vision CEO, 414-477-8624
Barbara Armstrong, Prevent Blindness Wisconsin Executive Director, 414-765-0505