Eyes are the portals through which we see the world. While some are born with perfect vision, many have vision problems that can develop at a very early age and go unnoticed for years to come. Missouri State University’s citizenship and service-learning (CASL) program has received a grant that will allow it to scan for eye problems in young children.

CASL recently received a grant from Mercy Foundation that allowed it to purchase a second vison screening camera and expand its FocusFirst Spot Vision Screener program. This new camera has the ability to check for many different kinds of eye problems, such as astigmatism, near-sightedness, far-sightedness, gaze problems and more.

What Does The Camera Do?

“It gives parents an opportunity to think. Maybe their kid, if they’re not learning or keeping up in class, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they have a learning disorder. Maybe it’s just that they need glasses because they can’t read or write. That is the backbone of this program,” said Katherine Butler, CASL graduate assistant.

With this new program, CASL can help identify people who need further vision screening.

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