Senator Jon Ossoff and Vision To Learn Founder Austin Beutner Address National Vision Care Crisis Among School Children

More than 3 million public school children lack the glasses they need
Vision To Learn has helped over 150,000 Georgia kids and provided more than 34,000 with glasses since 2017
Senator Ossoff delivered $400,000 in federal funding to help Vision To Learn provide more students with vision care in Georgia

Norcross, GA (June 14, 2024) – Senator Jon Ossoff and Vision To Learn Founder Austin Beutner highlighted the need to provide vision care for public school children at an event today which recognized the work of Vision To Learn in Georgia. Senator Ossoff emphasized the critical role of vision health in academic success and how programs like Vision To Learn can help address widespread disparities in access to care.

Today’s event also celebrated a $400,000 federal grant championed by Senator Ossoff in this year’s bipartisan government funding package. With the funds, Vision To Learn will fund a full-time mobile vision clinic that will expand access to eye exams and glasses to children in Georgia.

“Every child deserves the vision care they need to see, to read, and to enjoy life,” Sen. Ossoff said. “That’s why I’ve appropriated funds to expand mobile vision clinics for Georgia children. I thank Vision To Learn Founder Chair Austin Beutner for bringing this proposal to my office and for his leadership.”

Senator Jon Ossoff poses for a picture with a young student in a pink t-shirt and her mother whose wearing a black t-shirt. — Senator Jon Ossoff poses with a child who received a brand new pair of glasses at Gwinnett County Public Library’s Norcross Branch

“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.