June 7, 2023 — The National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health (NCCVEH) at Prevent Blindness is seeking nominations for the ninth annual Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award, which honors significant efforts of improving public health approaches for children’s vision and eye health.
Nominations can be submitted here. The deadline to submit is Saturday, July 1, at noon ET.
The award will be presented at NCCVEH’s annual meeting taking place virtually on Thursday, Sept. 14. Award recipients will have an opportunity to present at the meeting and will be featured on the NCCVEH website to showcase an overview of their efforts.
Established in 2014, this award commemorates Bonnie Strickland and her work to establish a comprehensive system for children’s vision in the U.S. 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. According to Prevent Blindness, Strickland improved vision for children through strong national partnerships, innovative program approaches, and improved national surveillance.
“Now in our 115th year, Prevent Blindness celebrates the efforts of those who work to improve vision and eye health for children across the country,” says Jeff Todd, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness. “We encourage anyone who shares in our sight-saving mission to submit nominations for this year’s Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award.”
Nominations for the 2023 Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award may include an individual person or group that demonstrates an impact in one or more of the following 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 socioeconomic populations.
- Training and education.
- Public awareness.
- Provision of resources and/or services.
- Surveillance and accountability.
- Reduction of health inequities.
- Infrastructure development at the local, state, or national level.
An all-volunteer committee will review all nominations and select the award recipient or recipients.
Last year’s award was presented to Donny W. Suh, M.D., FAAP, MBA, FACS, chief of pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus, professor, department of ophthalmology and visual science, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine.
For more information: nationalcenter.preventblindness.org.