VisionServe Alliance’s (VSA) recent webinar engaged VSA members and non-members, including government agency and foundation representatives. Participants in this discussion learned about VSA’s Big Data Project on Blindness and Low Vision Among Working-Age Adults. The purpose of the Project is to examine “the characteristics of people aged 18-64 years with and without vision impairment and the characteristics of working-aged people with blindness and low vision by labor force participation.” It revealed, for example, that among people with blindness and low vision, 28.9 percent have completed high school, compared with 11.5 percent among those with no vision impairment. A “huge disparity” is also reflected in income, with 11.5 percent of those with vision impairment earning less than $20,000 and those without vision impairment at 15.2 percent. These and other findings in the Report are important indicators for those involved in advocacy and planning geared toward individuals who are blind or have low vision. Webinar presenter Dr. John E. Crews expanded on the issues emerging from the Report during the program. Dr. Crews, the Principal Investigator for the VisionServe Alliance Big Data Project, is also a consultant with the College of Optometry at The Ohio State University and past health scientist, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Crews is receiving VSA’s Scientific Lifetime Achievement Award, to be presented at their upcoming “Focus on the Future 2024 Leadership Conference” in Kansas City, MO. The full press release announcing all of this year’s award winners is included on the webpage listing the VSA 2024 Annual Award Recipients.
To access the webinar recording, visit the YouTube webpage on the VSA Big Data Working Aged Adult Webinar. For more information about the Project, read the webpage for the Big Data Project – Data Insights For Working Age Adults, featuring the webinar recording as well as where people can receive the Working-Age Adult National and available state reports.
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