WAYNE COUNTY PARTNERS WITH VISION TO LEARN TO LAUNCH PROGRAM FOR KIDS

Highland Park, MI – Wayne County Executive Warren C. Evans was in Highland Park today to launch a significant expansion of vision support for children in Wayne County. This initiative, in partnership with Vision To Learn (VTL), enhances the work of the Department of Health, Human, and Veterans Services (HHVS), which screens all children in the county-excluding those in Detroit, which has its own health department-for vision deficits. The program officially kicked off at Barber Preparatory Academy, a public community school in the Highland Park School District open to all Pre-K to eighth grade students. Over 100 pairs of glasses were distributed during a special celebration event.

Annual screenings take place at Wayne County Head Start Centers, large daycare facilities, and public, private, and charter schools. Preschoolers are screened at least once between the ages of 3 and 5, while school-age children are assessed in grades 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9. After the screenings, students identified as needing follow-up care are referred for additional services.

Recognizing the gap between students needing referrals and those who do not receive the necessary care, Wayne County HHVS is thrilled to partner with VTL to address this issue. The program will provide eye exams directly in schools and supply two pairs of glasses to students in need. This initiative aims to ensure that all children in select districts who require glasses will receive them, enhancing their ability to succeed in the classroom.

Today's event also celebrated a $1,750,000 investment from Wayne County. This funding will enable VTL to operate a full-time mobile vision clinic, expanding access to eye exams and glasses for students in need throughout Wayne County. In addition, VTL is matching this contribution with up to $1,500,000 from separate funding sources.

"I spent most of my career in law enforcement. I shudder to think about how many youths get caught in the system because, at some point, they simply couldn't see what was happening at the front of the classroom," said Warren C. Evans, Wayne County Executive. "Making sure every single kid who needs a pair of glasses gets a pair of glasses is about more than just glasses-it's about changing the course of a child's life. That's why our partnership with Vision To Learn is so foundational to what we're trying to do in here in Wayne County."

Deputy Wayne County Executive Assad Turfe agreed.

"It's hard to overemphasize the importance of this new partnership with Vision To Learn. You always hear people talking about how a good education is the gateway to a better life, and this especially applies to kids from lower income families," he said. "But if they can't understand what's going on in the classroom because of poor vision, then that door to a better life gets slammed shut in their face through no fault of their own. We want to make sure that doesn't happen."

"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, Department of Health, Human, and Veterans Services for Wayne County. "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," said Vision To Learn Founder Austin Beutner. "This effort will ensure 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."

"It's astonishing to think that so many children lack access to basic eye care and that they struggle in school because of it. At the same time, it's encouraging to realize the impact this partnership will have. A simple pair of glasses can make such a big, lifelong difference in a child's life and we are stepping up to ensure that children who need them will get them," said Wayne County Commission Chair Alisha Bell.

Approximately 1 in 4 children need glasses to see clearly in school, yet many in low-income communities lack access to essential eye care. In Michigan alone, over 200,000 students do not have the glasses necessary to see the board or read a book. VTL, a nonprofit organization, is dedicated to tackling this issue by providing vision screenings, eye exams, and glasses to children in low-income schools across the country.

This is the latest in Wayne County's unprecedented expansion of health services through its Well Wayne Initiative. Other Well Wayne projects include a comprehensive air quality monitoring network with local environmental startup JustAir; an effort to place Narcan vending machines in 100 locations across the county; and Waynetrepreneurs, a program to offer new small businesses three months of free health insurance.

The Wayne County program will initially launch in Highland Park, Redford, River Rouge, Ecorse, Harper Woods, Hamtramck, Taylor, Wayne/ Westland, Dearborn, Dearborn Heights and aiming to expand to all Wayne County districts.

VTL, the largest provider of eye care in schools nationwide, has delivered vision screenings to over 3.2 million children, conducted more than 600,000 eye exams, and provided over 495,000 pairs of glasses-all at no cost to children or their families. Since its inception in Michigan in 2016, starting in Detroit, VTL has expanded to communities such as Grand Rapids, Flint, Lansing, South Redford, Kalamazoo, and Big Rapids. To date, more than 100,000 Michigan students have benefited from essential vision services, including over 35,000 eye exams and 30,000 pairs of glasses.

Founded in 2012 by Austin Beutner and the Beutner Family Foundation, Vision To Learn is dedicated to reaching children who have the most limited access to eye care. Approximately 90% of the children served live in poverty, and around 85% are Black or Latino. For more information about Vision To Learn and its impactful programs, please visit http://www.visiontolearn.org.