"As of today, we will have dispensed over 150 pair of glasses just here at Alexander Mitchell."
-Darren Horndasch, President & CEO WI Vision
Hundreds of kids at MPS schools throughout the city are being fitted with free glasses for the first time in their lives, courtesy of a partnership that started three years ago. "The Milwaukee Teachers Education Association and Wisconsin Vision have collaborated in the last three years," says Robert Peterson, President of the teachers union in Milwaukee. "Every teacher sees a need for kids to be able to see and be in good health. If no one steps up, the kids can't see. Not only is their learning held back, but their life chances and enjoyment."
Each semester, Prevent Blindness Wisconsin goes into a MPS school in need and provides vision screenings. This year, Alexander Mitchell School was the lucky recipient. "Much to our surprise, we had 220 failures. One out of three kids failed," says Amanda Walker, the Nurse at Alexander Mitchell. "It was pretty unbelievable."
In Fall, Wisconsin Vision came in and picked the worst 90 exams and fitted kids for their new frames. The glasses were delivered soon after. Now, they are back fitting another hundred kids with their new frames.
In the last three years, Wisconsin Vision has dispensed over 350 glasses to students, donating roughly $80,000 of their costs to help students improve their quality of life. "It fits our mission of promoting healthy eye care and mixes our core competency which is optical health" says Horndasch. "Getting involved in the community is important.