TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Since 2004, more than 2,000 students attending 22 Alabama colleges, universities, and high schools have screened over 88,000 children in Alabama for eye diseases and disorders as part of their affiliation with FocusFirst, a signature project of Impact Alabama: A Student Service Initiative.  Impact is the state¹s first nonprofit organization dedicated to developing and implementing substantive service-learning projects in coordination with select universities and junior colleges throughout the state.

FocusFirst staff members plan to screen 324 children in Baldwin County on Aug. 24 and 25.

A potential problem has been detected in approximately 11.9 percent of the Alabama children screened to date. All such children received or will receive fully subsidized follow-up care, as necessary, under the supervision and coordination of Sight Savers America. 

FocusFirst provides a cost-effective direct response to the vision problems of underprivileged children who live in urban and rural poverty in Alabama.  FocusFirst student volunteers travel to communities of need and conduct vision screenings for children, 6 months to age 5, using state-of-the-art photo-screening technology. Founder and President Stephen Black, a professor/attorney who has developed a Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility at the University of Alabama, began implementing Impact in the fall of 2004.  Impact now has 30 full-time staff members working out of the non-profit¹s headquarters in Birmingham and Tuscaloosa. 

"We desperately need young people's energies, perspectives, and talents to make our communities and institutions work well," Black stated. "I see the college years as an incredible opportunity to engage students in addressing human and community needs through structured service opportunities, while providing them with a sense of their ability as well as responsibility to affect structural change."

To learn more about Impact, visit www.impactalabama.org, or call Stephen Black at (205) 936-9963. 

 Upcoming Screenings in Baldwin County

 Aug. 24, 8:30 a.m.,  Bay Minette Elementary, 800 Blackburn Ave.

Aug. 24,  8:30 a.m.,  Delta School, 10251 Whitehouse Fork Road Ext, Bay Minette.

Aug.  24, 8:30 a.m.,  Elberta Elementary., 25820 US Highway 98, Elberta.

Aug. 24, 8:30 a.m., Foley Elementary., 450 N. Cedar St., Foley.

Aug. 24, 10:30 a.m., Magnolia School, 13317 County Road 55, Magnolia Springs.

Aug. 24, 8:30 a.m., Perdido School, 23589 County Road 47, Perdido.

Aug. 24, 10:30 a.m., Pine Grove School, 43980 Pine Grove Road, Bay Minette.

Aug. 24, 10:30 a.m., Stapleton Elementary., 35480 Harriot Ave., Stapleton.

Aug, 25, 8:30 a.m., Elsanor Elementary., 23440 US Highway 90, Robertsdale.

Aug, 25, 8:30 a.m., Gulf Shores Elementary, 1600 E. 3rd St., Gulf Shores.

Aug., 25, 8:30 a.m., Loxley Elementary, 4999 S. Magnolia St., Loxley.

Aug, 25, 8:30 a.m., Robertsdale Elementary, 19150 Wilters St., Robertsdale.

Aug, 25 ,10:30 a.m., Rosinton Elementary, 19757 County Road 64, Robertsdale.

Aug. 25, 8:30 a.m.,  Silverhill Elementary, 15800 4th Ave., Silverhill.

Aug. 25,10:30 a.m., Summerdale Elementary, 400 E. Broadway St., Summerdale.

Aug. 25,10:30 a.m., Swift School., 6330 Bon Secour Hwy., Bon Secour.

Impact Alabama Selected one of 41 finalists for $20,000 national awards competition 

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -   Impact Alabama: A Student Service Initiative has been selected as one of 41 finalists for the Tom's of Maine 50 States for Good National Awards Competition.  Five winners will be selected based on the results from an online voting competition, each of whom will receive $20,000.  Impact is the only nonprofit from Alabama selected to participate in the competition.  

The competition focused on community-based nonprofits that need volunteers to do their outreach. Of the  700 nonprofits from all 50 states who applied, 41 finalists were chosen based on use of community volunteers, the feasibility of the project, and the project¹s benefit to the community. 

Should Impact Alabama win the competition, the $20,000 award will be utilized to expand its signature FocusFirst Initiative.  FocusFirstprovides a cost-effective direct response to the vision problems of children who live in urban and rural areas.  Under the supervision of Impact staff, undergraduate and graduate students ensure that children in Head Starts and lower-income daycares are screened for vision problems, using high-tech photo optic scan cameras, and receive subsidized follow-up care through Sight Savers America.  Over 1,900 college students at more than 20 colleges and universities throughout Alabama have participated with FocusFirst.  Over the last six years, these students have screened more than 88,000 children in 67 counties across the state, with approximately 11 percent of the children failing the screenings and receiving subsidized follow-up care as necessary. 

Individuals may vote for Impact Alabama once per day from now until Sept. 10 at the following link: www.impactalabama.org. 

Impact Alabama has just begun its seventh year of service to Alabama, working with a staff of 30 individuals.  Impact¹s fundamental staffing model relies on employing talented, intelligent and socially conscious recent college graduates for one or two years following graduation.  Not only does this model represent a cost-effective business model, it also maximizes the impact of this generation¹s commitment to service.