For the third year, more than 100 volunteers gathered at the Trinity River Campus to provide eye exams and glasses to Tarrant County children at Kids Vision Fest 2015. In an effort to eliminate poor vision and its lifelong consequences, The Alcon Foundation, Essilor Vision Foundation, Tarrant County College and Kids Vision for Life – Tarrant County joined to provide eye exams and glasses to children, ages five to 12, at no cost to the family, based on financial need. Out of the 686 children served, 471 required glasses, which will be sent to their schools four to five weeks following the exam.
“Providing opportunities to collaborate with organizations in our community is a hallmark on this campus,” said Robert Munoz, vice president of Community and Industry Education Services at TCC Trinity River. “Our office is proud to be involved in such events that impact our future students and their families. I would like to thank TCCD staff members from other campuses/District offices who assisted. I also am extremely proud of our students from our Men of Color mentoring program who gave of their time.”
Statistics show 80 percent of learning comes visually in a child’s first 12 years and as many as 25 percent of all school children in the United States have a vision problem significant enough to affect learning. Up to 90 percent of children who need glasses do not have them, which can affect academic performance, behavior and self-esteem.
“Vision plays a crucial role in a child’s ability to learn and succeed in the classroom, so we’re absolutely delighted that Kids Vision Fest provided almost 700 children with vision services ranging from screenings and eye exams, to new eyeglasses,” said Bob Colucci, chairman of the Essilor Vision Foundation. “We also deeply appreciate the wonderful partnership of Alcon Foundation and Tarrant County College Trinity River Campus, which hosted this event and provided such a beautiful, easily accessible venue for our families.”
Kids Vision Fest Photo Gallery
Robert Ashley interviews Robert Munoz about Kids Vision Fest:
