“If you can’t see what’s on the blackboard—it really doesn’t matter what’s happening on the blackboard,” said Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, Director, Wayne County Department of Health, Human and Veterans Services. “We’re partnering with Vision To Learn to make sure every child can see what’s happening at the blackboard. The health consequences of giving a child a pair of glasses—of empowering them to see—redound for the rest of their lives. From a public health standpoint, this is a no-brainer.”

“More than 3 million children across the country go to school every day without the glasses they need. When children come to school hungry, we feed them. We make sure students have the books and school materials they need. Why not glasses?” said Vision To Learn Founder Austin Beutner. “This effort will ensure all 10,000 school children in Wayne County are provided with eye care. Every child in every school, everywhere in the country, should have the glasses they need to succeed in school and in life.”

The Wayne County effort is also supported by Senator Debbie Stabenow, who secured a $1.1 million Congressionally Directed Spending allocation for the project.

About 1 in 4 children need glasses to see clearly at school, but in many low-income communities, children often go without access to eye care. In Michigan, more than 200,000 students lack the glasses they need to see the board or read a book. Vision To Learn (VTL), a non-profit charity, seeks to address this issue by providing vision screenings, eye exams and glasses to children at schools in low-income communities. VTL, the largest provider of eye care at schools in the country, has helped provide more than 3.2 million children in 17 states and the District of Columbia with vision screenings, 600,000 with eye exams and almost 500,000 with glasses, all at no cost to children or their families. 27% of children provided with a vision screening by Vision To Learn needed glasses and more than 90% of those who needed them did not have them.

“Barber Preparatory Academy is grateful to Vision To Learn and Wayne County for bringing glasses to our kids who were going without,” said Principal Nicole Arnold. “It’s wonderful that this amazing intervention is going to alleviate barriers and help kids throughout the County, and the state.”

Vision To Learn started helping children in Michigan in 2016, beginning in Detroit. The effort has since expanded to help children in Grand Rapids, Flint, Lansing, South Redford, Kalamazoo and Big Rapids. To date, more than 100,000 Michigan students have been provided with vision screenings in partnership with County Health Departments, more than 35,000 provided with eye exams and 30,000 with glasses.

About Vision To Learn
Vision To Learn, a non-profit charity, was founded in 2012 by Austin Beutner and the Beutner Family Foundation. Vision To Learn serves the needs of the hardest-to-reach children; about 90% of kids served by Vision To Learn live in poverty and about 85% are Black or Latino. Vision To Learn, the largest provider of eye care at schools in the country, has helped provide more than 3.2 million children with vision screenings, and provided more than 600,000 with eye exams, and more than 495,000 with glasses, in 17 states and the District of Columbia, all at no cost to children or their families. For more information on Vision To Learn, please visit www.visiontolearn.org.

“More than 3 million children across the country go to school every day without the glasses they need,” said Vision To Learn Founder Austin Beutner. “Every child in every school, everywhere in the country, should have the glasses they need to succeed in school and in life. Senator Ossoff’s leadership is helping to ensure children in Georgia get the help they need.”

Approximately 1 in 4 children need glasses to see clearly at school, but in many low-income and/or rural communities, children often go without access to eye care. In Georgia, more than 300,000 students lack the glasses they need to see the board or read a book. Vision To Learn (VTL), a non-profit charity, seeks to address this issue by providing vision screenings, eye exams and glasses to children at schools in low-income communities across the country. They have provided more than 3 million children in 17 states and the District of Columbia with vision screenings, 575,000 with eye exams and 480,000 with glasses, all at no cost to children or their families. 27% of children provided with a vision screening by Vision To Learn needed glasses and more than 90% of those who needed them did not have them.

Vision To Learn started helping children in Georgia in 2017, beginning in the Atlanta Metro Area. With the support of The effort has since expanded to help children in rural Georgia communities including Rome City, Cedartown, Thompson, and Okefenokee. To date, more than 150,000 Georgia kids have been provided vision services, including more than 41,000 provided with eye exams and 34,000 with glasses.

About Vision To Learn

Vision To Learn, a non-profit charity, was founded in 2012 by Austin Beutner and the Beutner Family Foundation. Vision To Learn serves the needs of the hardest-to-reach children; about 90% of kids served by Vision To Learn live in poverty and about 85% are Black or Latino. Vision To Learn has provided more than 3 million children with vision screenings and about 480,000 with glasses, in 17 states and the District of Columbia, all at no cost to children or their families. For more information on Vision To Learn, please visit www.visiontolearn.org.

Vision To Learn. “When a child comes to school we make sure they’re provided with food, along with the books and school supplies they need. Why not glasses? Every child in every school, everywhere in the country, should have the glasses they need to succeed in school and in life.”

Approximately 1 in 4 children need glasses to see clearly at school, but in many low-income and/or rural communities, children often go without access to eye care. In Ohio, an estimated 250,000 students lack glasses, despite children vision screenings provided to children at school every other year. Vision To Learn (VTL), a non-profit charity, seeks to address this issue by providing vision screenings, eye exams and glasses to children at schools in low-income communities across the country. They have provided more than 3 million children in 17 states and the District of Columbia with vision screenings, 570,000 with eye exams and 470,000 with glasses, all at no cost to children or their families. 27% of children provided with a vision screening by Vision To Learn needed glasses and more than 90% of those who needed them did not have them.

Vision To Learn started helping children in Ohio in 2021 together with the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio and the Ohio Optometric Foundation’s iSee program at Cambridge Primary in Cambridge. The effort has since expanded to Youngstown with the support of Sight for All United and the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, and to Cleveland with the support of Ford Motor Fund and The Kaulig Foundation.

Vision To Learn operates the most comprehensive and cost-effective, school-based program for children’s eye care in Ohio and has provided more than 36,000 children with vision screenings and 10,000 with glasses in the state. An essential component of its public-private model is collaborating with local partners, including philanthropic organizations, eye care professionals, school districts, and state and local government.

In 2021, Vision To Learn’s program in Southeastern Ohio became the first program funded by the pay-for-success program ResultsOHIO. Over the next two years, Vision To Learn exceeded every program metric established with ResultsOHIO, helping kids in 24 rural counties receive school-based eye care.

About Vision To Learn

Vision To Learn, a non-profit charity, was founded in 2012 by Austin Beutner and the Beutner Family Foundation. Vision To Learn serves the needs of the hardest-to-reach children; about 90% of kids served by Vision To Learn live in poverty and about 85% are Black or Latino. Vision To Learn has provided more than 3 million children with vision screenings and about 480,000 with glasses, in 17 states and the District of Columbia, all at no cost to children or their families. For more information on Vision To Learn, please visit www.visiontolearn.org.

than 80,000 Iowa children in 17 counties, bringing care to kids in Des Moines, Waterloo, Fort Dodge, and over two dozen communities across the state. 

“When a child comes to school we make sure they’re provided with food, along with the books and school supplies they need. Why not glasses?” said Austin Beutner, founder of Vision To Learn. “Every child in every school, everywhere in the country, should have the glasses they need to succeed in school and in life.” 

Vision To Learn has been recognized by Iowa leaders including Senator Joni Ernst, who co-authored a bi-partisan 2019 U.S. Senate Resolution recognizing Vision To Learn as “a national leader in improving access to eyeglasses for students in low-income communities and in helping students succeed in school.” 

“It’s our job to empower every kid to write their own destiny. And when you can’t see the whiteboard in school, how can you see your future?” said Rene Gellerman, President and CEO of United Way Quad Cities. “Through Vision To Learn and in partnership with our schools, businesses and caring individuals in our region, this program creates another early intervention for kids who need it most, so they can reach their potential. ” 

“One in four school-aged children has a vision problem that if not detected or treated early could impact not only a child’s learning, but their overall health and wellness,” said Suzanne Heckenlaible, executive director of Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation. “As Delta Dental has expanded into vision benefits with DeltaVision, we have also expanded our Foundation’s mission to include vision education and access. We are proud to support Vision To Learn and their work to expand vision care services and glasses for children across Iowa.”  

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About Vision To Learn  

Vision To Learn, a non-profit charity, was founded in 2012 by Austin Beutner and the Beutner Family Foundation. Vision To Learn serves the needs of the hardest-to-reach children; about 90% of kids served by Vision To Learn live in poverty and about 85% are Black or Latino. Vision To Learn has provided about 3 million children with vision screenings and more than 460,000 with glasses, in 17 states and the District of Columbia, all at no cost to children or their families. For more information on Vision To Learn, please visit www.visiontolearn.org. 

About Delta Dental of Iowa 

Delta Dental of Iowa, a not-for-profit health and wellness company, provides dental vision, legal, life and caregiving benefits to more than 1.6 million Iowans. Locally focused and nationally networked, Delta Dental of Iowa and its Foundation invest in robust community systems and partnerships. These efforts empower and engage all Iowans to have optimal oral, vision, and overall health. Since 2002, Delta Dental has invested more than $62 million to improve the oral and overall health of Iowans. For more information, visit the website at www.deltadentalia.com. 

About United Way Quad Cities 

United Way Quad Cities is a community-based social change organization that provides every Quad Citizen with opportunities to live their best possible life. Working with our determined supporters and partners, we lead efforts to improve education, income and health – the building blocks of opportunity. We invite volunteers, donors and advocates to join us in achieving lasting results right here at home. Learn more at UnitedWayQC.org. 

The needs range from eye issues like amblyopia and strabismus to diabetes or a detached retina. Vision To Learn refers these children to other medical providers for care, but sadly, there is no certainty they receive it due to lack of access, financial issues or other problems. That’s where Children’s Hospital LA (CHLA) comes in. The Vision Center at CHLA is world renowned for treating children with complex eye diseases and is the only center of its kind in the United States with expertise in every pediatric ophthalmologic subspecialty. Children identified by Vision To Learn’s optometrists who need additional care will be connected to specialists at CHLA through a combination of telemedicine consultation and clinical treatment.

Sophisticated new equipment on Vision To Learn mobile clinics will help Vision To Learn’s optometrists consult with CHLA eye experts in real time, sharing data through web-enabled smart glasses and specialized cameras and ophthalmoscopes.

The children will be provided with additional care at CHLA at no cost to the child or their family, thanks to a $1 million grant from Everychild.

This is a first-in-the-nation effort to make sure 100% of kids in a low-income community get comprehensive eye care, at scale.

This effort by Vision To Learn, CHLA and Compton schools is further validation of how school-based services can help address children’s needs in low-income communities.

“This effort in Compton will be the first in the nation to provide every school child in a low-income community with comprehensive eye care, at scale,” said Austin Beutner, Founder of Vision To Learn, “When kids come to  school              hungry, we feed them. We make sure students have the books and   school              materials they need and that every classroom has a great teacher. Why not eye care to make sure they can get the most out of their education?”

“The women of the Everychild Foundation are thrilled to have this opportunity to partner with Vision To Learn,” said Jacqueline Caster, Founder and President of  Everychild. “When children lack good eyesight, they invariably fall behind in school, which sets them up for a less successful life on so many levels. This new program has the ability to catch many serious visual problems that would otherwise go undetected and set children up for preventable lifelong disabilities.”

“It’s estimated that up to 95% of children in some communities go without regular and adequate eye care. This can lead to vision challenges being unnoticed for years, and the consequences can be severe,” said CHLA Vision Center Associate Director Sudha Nallasamy, MD. “Our team is proud to be part of the solution to meet these students where they are, break down any barriers to accessing care and set them up for academic success.”   

“Compton Unified is thrilled to be working with Vision To Learn and The Vision Center at Children’s Hospital LA, thanks to the grant from the Everychild Foundation,” said Compton Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Darin Brawly. “This initiative will ensure that every child in Compton Unified has access to essential vision care services, promoting their overall health, and contributing directly to their academic success.”

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About Vision To Learn

Vision To Learn, a non-profit charity, was founded in 2012 by Austin Beutner and the Beutner Family Foundation. The program has helped children in more than 750 low-income communities in 16 states and the District of Columbia. Vision To Learn serves the needs of the hardest-to-reach children; about 90% of kids served by Vision To Learn live in poverty; 85% are Black and Latino.

About Everychild Foundation

Everychild Foundation is a charitable group of over 200 Los Angeles women that work together to  provide a single nonprofit organization with a $1 million grant every year.

Vision To Learn’s work at Lake Street School completes a effort providing vision care to every student in need in Vernon Public Schools. Seven schools were visited, with over 3,100 students vision screened. 858 students were provided with eye exams, and 787 with glasses.

“For students with vision issues, a pair of glasses is as important as school supplies like books, pencils, and computers,” said Vernon Public Schools Superintendent Joseph Macary. “Vision To Learn’s program is simple, yet powerful, and we are already seeing the positive impact on our students’ learning.”

Vision To Learn’s effort in Connecticut has found a large unmet need among students in the state. About 35% of students provided with a vision screening by Vision To Learn needed an eye exam, 85% of students who received an eye exam needed glasses and more than 80% of them did not have them.

Dalio Education provided seed funding for Vision To Learn’s Connecticut region, and recently matched grants by CT State Department of Education and Focusing Philanthropy, for a combined $1 million in new program funding for Connecticut.

“I know how much this work matters because I personally rely on eyeglasses for everything, and I have a grandson who wears eyeglasses too. I feel tremendous gratitude to Vision To Learn for providing not only the eye exams but also the glasses for the children who need them; after all, how can they succeed in school and life without them,” said Barbara Dalio, Founder and Director of Dalio Education.

“The Connecticut State Department of Education has been a proud partner and supporter of Vision To Learn since it launched in Connecticut in 2022,” Education Commissioner Charlene M. Russell-Tucker said. “We know from the research that vision programs that offer children eye examinations and eyeglasses help improve academic performance and student success. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Vision To Learn as we strive towards ensuring every child has the tools they need to achieve their full potential.”

Connecticut is also the site of Vision To Learn’s first WNBA partnership – with the CT Sun. Vision To Learn’s mobile clinic is decorated with CT Sun team colors and team mascot Blaze, to the delight of school children.

“The Connecticut Sun Foundation is proud to partner with Vision To Learn in Connecticut, to help students see clearly in class, and on the basketball court,” said Morgan Tuck, Connecticut Sun Director of Franchise Development.

Experts estimate three to four million children across the country go to school every day unable to see the board or pages of a textbook clearly. About one in four children will naturally need glasses. Children who need glasses and don’t have them are more likely to be misdiagnosed with behavioral issues in kindergarten, be labeled “slow” learners by 5th grade, and to drop out of high school. Unfortunately, in low-income urban and rural communities, most children who need glasses don’t have them due to financial constraints, language barriers, unresponsive health bureaucracies or the simple fact there are no eye care professionals in their neighborhood.

Over the last decade, nonprofit charity Vision To Learn has worked to address the “glasses gap” by providing vision screenings, eye exams and glasses to kids where they are most days – at their neighborhood school. With a fleet of mobile clinics staffed with trained and licensed eye care professionals, Vision To Learn has helped ensure nearly 2.9 million students across the country received vision screenings and provided more than 440,000 with glasses, all at no cost to the child or their family.

The impact of providing glasses to children at schools is shown in a study published in JAMA  Ophthalmology by researchers from the Center for Research and Reform in Education and the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University.

The researchers conducted the largest and most rigorous study in the U.S. about the connection between glasses and academic achievement by comparing students’ standardized test scores before and after receiving glasses from Vision To Learn. Thousands of children from more than 100 schools in Baltimore participated in the study. The children who received glasses did much better in school and the impacts were greater than more costly measures such as lengthening the school day, providing computers, or creating charter schools. The children who showed the biggest gains, the equivalent of an additional four to six months of learning, were those who are often the hardest to help—students in the bottom quarter of their class academically and students with learning differences and disabilities.

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About Vision To Learn

Vision To Learn, a non-profit charity, was founded in 2012 by Austin Beutner and the Beutner Family Foundation. Vision To Learn serves the needs of the hardest-to-reach children; about 90% of kids served by Vision To Learn live in poverty and about 85% are Black or Latino. Vision To Learn has provided nearly 2.9 million children with vision screenings and more than 440,000 with glasses, in 16 states and the District of Columbia. It has also identified more than 50,000 children with more complex vision and medical issues – all at no cost to children or their families. For more information on Vision To Learn, please visit www.visiontolearn.org.