The Mississippi Optometric Association and the Mississippi Vision Foundation announced eye exams will be provided at no cost to third-graders who did not pass the state reading assessment test and do not have insurance.
The exams are offered through July 31 and optometrist Jimmy Humber at Clarksdale Vision Center is participating in the program for the first time.
Humber is a member of the MOA, but he was not aware of the no-cost eye exams until this year.
“They did a better job this year of publicizing it with emails,” Humber said. “It’s so important that all children get their eyes checked. Just in the past year, we’ve had two patients five years and younger that had congenital glaucoma.”
Humber said those children were referred to Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis.
Although Mississippi’s third-graders continue to improve on their statewide reading assessment, in 2017, eight percent, or more than 3,000, of the state’s third-graders, did not pass.
“The Mississippi Economic Council understands the cornerstone of a strong economic climate begins with education. We are making great strides in improving our test scores, and we must do everything we can do to enhance our students’ ability to improve reading and comprehension,” Scott Waller, CEO and president of the Mississippi Economic Council said in a press release.
Humber expressed similar sentiments.
“Children, they can’t learn what they can’t see,” he said. “I’ve always felt that anybody that needs vision correction, whether they can pay for it or not, I’ve never turned anyone down. Many of those who are in the most need of it don’t have the means to pay for it. We’ve always made accommodations to those. This is just another way to let the public know that this is available.”
Humber acknowledged that the families of some children may not be able to afford the cost.
“If I’m able to, I’ll still provide it at no cost to them if they can’t afford it,” he said, adding other local organizations, including the Lions Club, have helpful programs for those in need.
Humber could not predict which school system most of the third-graders needing free eye exams would come from, but he said his hope is to help everyone locally.
“Our goal is for every school-age child in this county to have their eyes examined at least once by the time they’re in the fourth grade,” he said. “This is one way to help make that happen. Preferably, have them tested sooner than that. Ideally, everybody would have their eyes checked by first grade.”
Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves saw the program as an asset to Mississippi.
“I appreciate optometrists for sharing their time and expertise in schools across the state,” he said. “The ability to read directly correlates to a child’s potential for success. If we can keep raising the level of achievement among Mississippi’s students, the possibilities for our state’s future are endless.”
To locate a participating optometrist, parents of eligible third-graders should go to www.msvisionfoundation.org or call 601-572-0845. When making the appointment, parents should tell the receptionist they are scheduling the third grade eye appointment. They should bring the letter notifying them that their child did not pass the assessment test with them to the appointment.
