Vision to Learn will return to the Baltimore County Public Library (BCPL) this summer, providing free eye exams and glasses to children.
The non-profit will offer appointments at 15 BCPL branches over the summer months for children 17 and under.
According to a press release, “[s]tudies have consistently shown that clear vision is directly linked to a child’s ability to learn effectively.” Vision to Learn will partner with BCPL to help “close the ‘glasses gap’” in underserved communities that often lack access to eye care, and “help children have the tools they need for the upcoming school year.”
Vision to Learn has helped children in more than 750 communities across 15 states and Washington, D.C., according to its website. The non-profit began 10 years ago in California and now operates 50 mobile clinics across the country.
In an interview with the company’s founder, Austin Beutner, he said, “A Johns Hopkins study of Vision To Learn’s work in Baltimore shows the profound impact glasses have on children. The research was published in The Journal for the American Medical Association of Ophthalmology by the Center for Research and Reform in Education and the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University. Children who received glasses did better in school and the impacts were greater than more costly measures such as lengthening the school day, providing computers, or creating charter schools.”
Beutner went on to note that the students who showed the most improvement are often the ones considered hardest to help — those in the bottom quarter of their class academically and those with learning differences and disabilities.
For the summer program, participants need to identify and verbalize basic shapes during the eye exam, and a licensed optometrist provides further examination if it appears the child needs glasses. They can then choose their frames and receive their new glasses within a few weeks.
BCPL CEO Sonia Alcántara-Antoine is thrilled to partner with Vision to Learn on this initiative.
“We are delighted to welcome back Vision to Learn to our library branches,” Alcántara-Antoine said. “By providing free eye exams and glasses to students, we are actively investing in the academic success and overall well-being of our community’s youth. It’s another way the library is working as a community connector.”
Space is limited, so pre-registration is required. Appointments are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Families must register in person at their chosen branch, and a parent or legal guardian must sign a consent form for the program. Each eye exam takes 10-15 minutes, including the exam, glasses selection, and cleaning of equipment between patients.
See the chart below to find the the dates a BCPL branch near you will be offering eye exams for children.
Vision to Learn will be at these BCPL branches on these dates from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.:
- June 22: Woodlawn
- June 27: Cockeysville
- July 21: Owings Mills
- July 24: Arbutus
- July 25: Rosedale
- July 27: Sollers Point
- July 31 Sollers Point
- Aug. 3: Loch Raven
- Aug. 7: Rosedale
- Aug. 8: White Marsh
- Aug. 9: Randallstown
- Aug. 10: Cockeysville
- Aug. 14: Woodlawn
- Aug. 15: Randallstown
- Aug. 17: White Marsh
- Aug. 22: Towson
- Aug. 24: Cockeysville
- Aug. 25: North Point
