National Vision Awards $12,500 to 2021-2022 Scholarship Program Winners

Friday, April 8 2022 | 10 h 45 min | Awards, News

National Vision, Inc. named the winners of its seventh annual scholarship program, awarding three optometry students the program’s largest scholarships to date. Applicants were asked to share their perspectives on the importance of affordable primary eye care in an evolving health care environment.

“We received more entries this year than ever before, which clearly shows that the next generation of optometrists share in our passion for primary care optometry,” said Alex Louw, chief medical officer, National Vision.

The 2021-2022 scholarship program winners include:

• First Place ($7,500): Juan Giraldo, University of Waterloo, School of Optometry and Vision Science, Class of 2022
• Runner-Up ($2,500): Alicja Biniek, Illinois College of Optometry, Class of 2022
• Runner-Up ($2,500): Aliya Shafi, University of Waterloo, The School of Optometry and Vision Science, Class of 2022

Giraldo was the first-ever repeat winner for the program, which is open to third- and fourth-year optometry students. This year’s prompt gave students the option to submit video or written essays addressing how they would be part of the solution to a problem millions of Americans face — not being able to afford an eye exam. All three winners offered unique, informed takes on their plans for making a difference as practicing optometrists.

Click HERE for the full press release.