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Call for Nominations Issued for the 2022 Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award from the National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness

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Annual, National Award Recognizes Outstanding Public Health Efforts to Improve the Vision Health of Children in the United States

The National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness (NCCVEH) has issued a call for nominations for the eighth annual “Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award.” The highest honor that the NCCVEH bestows, the award recognizes significant efforts by an individual or group of individuals to improve public health approaches for children’s vision and eye health at the state or national level. The deadline for submission is August 1, 2022.

The award will be presented at the Annual Meeting of the NCCVEH, to be held virtually on Friday, Oct.14, 2022.The award consists of a commemorative plaque, recognition, and opportunity to present at the Annual Meeting. The award recipient will be featured on the NCCVEH website, along with an overview of their innovative approaches to children’s vision and eye health.

This award was established in 2014 to commemorate Ms. Bonnie Strickland and her groundbreaking work to establish a comprehensive system for children’s vision in the United States.  She served as Director of the Division of Services for Children with Special Health Needs at the federal Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Health Resources and Services Administration before her retirement in 2014. Ms. Strickland proved to be a powerful force, driving improved vision for children through strong national partnerships, innovative program approaches, and improved national surveillance.

Nominations for the 2022 Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award may include an individual person or group who is implementing change to improve children’s vision health in the United States. Nominees should be able to demonstrate an impact in one or more areas of a population health system supporting children’s vision:

  • Key Stakeholder Engagement or Collaboration, including representation from families and diverse racial/ethnic/geographic and socio-economic levels target populations.
  • Training and Education
  • Public Awareness
  • Provision of Resources and/or Services
  • Surveillance and Accountability
  • Reduction of Health Inequities
  • Infrastructure Development- Local, State, or National Level

The all-volunteer Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award Committee will review all nominations and select the award recipient or recipients.

The 2021 Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award was presented to Ms. Shavette Turner, Vice President of Children’s Services at Prevent Blindness Georgia, for her unique approach to helping disadvantaged and underserved youth across Georgia access vision and eye care, with emphasis in Hall County where there is a large Latinx population that experiences barriers to eye care.

Additional previous award winners include Logan Newman, NBCT, ABO, MS Ed, Program Developer and NYS Certified Science teacher, Career in Technical Experience Teacher, and founder of the East High School Vision Care Program for his innovative, educational and vocational approach to vision and eye care for disadvantaged and underserved youth in Rochester, New York; Anne L. Coleman, MD, MPH, UCLA Stein Eye Institute, for her work at the UCLA Mobile Eye Clinic (UMEC); the Vision in Preschoolers (VIP) Study Group; Richard Bunner, retired from the Ohio Department of Health; Sean P. Donahue, MD, PhD, Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at Vanderbilt University; the Illinois Eye Institute (IEI) at Princeton Vision Clinic; and the Pediatric Physicians’ Organization at Children’s (PPOC).

“As part of our ‘Year of Children’s Vision,’ we are especially excited to recognize those who have made significant contributions to improving the vision health outcomes for our kids,” said Jeff Todd, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness. “We encourage nominations of our allies who work to make children’s eyesight a priority.”

For more information or to submit a nomination for the 2022 Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award, please visit nationalcenter.preventblindness.org/bonnie-strickland-champion-for-childrens-vision-award/, or contact Donna Fishman at [email protected].

Download the 2022 Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award Nominations media release