Ten years ago the first Educating Young Eyes symposium convened at the University of Washington, Bothell. It was attended by teachers, school nurses, attorneys, WA State Supreme Court judges, politicians, optometrists, ophthalmologists, and concerned citizens across our State representing a wide range of diverse communities. The goal was to understand the issues and explore what could be done next to support school children. As a result of the connections made at our symposium and other related efforts, the Washington State legislature ultimately passed Senate Bill 6245 (in 2016) mandating that all public schools screen for near vision issues in addition to distance vision. 

Another milestone was a major grant to the University of Washington to construct a mobile vision clinic to serve WA State schools.  Near Vision Institute - a 501c3 nonprofit - was founded in 2021 and has since provided more than 4,000 school children with eye exams and eyeglasses.

Near Vision Institute / EYE See Clinic's mission is to "Pioneer School Optometry".   Twenty-five percent of school children have vision issues that impact learning according to the Washington Board of Health. Less than 40% of school children referred for an eye exam by a school vision screening program actually get an eye exam and needed eyeglasses. Helping school children with vision issues access eye exams, eyeglasses, referrals, and treatments can be a challenge in all communities, but is particularly difficult in rural settings and provider shortage areas.

We Need Your Support: Better vision for school children takes effort, and donations. We are...

• Expanding our Board of Directors (maturing our administrative capacity)
• Establishing a professional Board of Advisors (we value interdisciplinary collaboration)
• Establishing a School Optometry Corps (more involved optometrists means more schools we can visit)
• Establishing a Doctor Locator Lookup Tool so parents can more easily find providers. 
• Developing the features, security and dependability of our EYE Toolbox Software 
• Writing educational materials and videos about vision issues in schools (for parents and professionals)
• Collaborating with universities in research projects
• Publishing what we learn so others can be enabled to help kid's vision

We have accomplished a lot in 10 years, but there is so much more to do.  This 10-year celebration party and fundraiser will share more about our story and the road ahead.  Everyone should come home with more insight into how they can help facilitate better access to eyecare solutions for school children in their communities.  Generous donations will make it all possible. 

Together, we can pave the road towards sustainability!