As part of the Statewide System for Vision Services, Iowa’s AEAs partner with the Iowa Department of Education and the Iowa Educational Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired to provide vision services to students who are blind or visually impaired.
Teachers of the visually impaired provide instruction in Braille (a series of raised dots that form letters, words and numbers that are read through touch), orientation and mobility for safe travel in familiar and unfamiliar environments, use of low vision technology devices to participate in the school’s curriculum and student acquisition with the skills essential for their education and daily living.
To be eligible for services, students must have a current eye report (within 12 months) from an ophthalmologist or optometrist that diagnoses their visual acuity as 20/70 or less in the better eye with the best possible correction. The visual impairment, after correction, must be educationally significant as determined by the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team.
For more information about vision services and regulations in Iowa, visit:
Iowa Educational Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired