Other Area School District Collaborations
Norristown Area School District
In 2013, a vision care team from The Eye Institute of Salus at Drexel University started providing comprehensive vision care services to economically disadvantaged children enrolled in the Norristown Area School District (NASD), a suburban school district outside of Philadelphia. A rotating school-based vision clinic was established in a space at one of the schools in the district. The Eye Institute’s (TEI) vision care team examined children one to two days per week in the school until all children who were in need of care were seen. The vision clinic was then moved to another school to continue rendering care to children in need. The “Looking Out for Kids” charity fund, Norristown community partners, and foundation grants provided the financial resources needed for these valued services. During the 2023-2024 academic year, TEI’s vision care team screened 473 children, provided 205 comprehensive eye exams and 394 pairs of glasses on-site for NASD students.
Cheltenham, Jenkintown and Abington, Souderton School Districts
Our vision care team also provided eye care to children in Cheltenham, Jenkintown, Abington and Souderton school districts with the University’s Mobile Vision Care Unit in the 2023-2024 academic year. The “Big Red Bus,” as it is affectionately nicknamed, includes all the essential equipment needed to complete a comprehensive vision exam. Using the mobile unit, 263 eye exams were performed and 482 pairs of glasses were dispensed to children in these school districts.
Upper Darby and Chester-Upland School Districts
In Delaware County, TEI conducted eye exams for children in the Upper Darby and Chester-Upland school districts. In those districts combined, 150 eye exams were performed and 270 pairs of glasses were dispensed to children in need during the 2023-2024 academic year.