Experienced professional named director of Vision Clinic

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—A professional with more than 35 years of experience with low-vision rehabilitation and services has been named director of Western Michigan University's Vision Clinic.

George Kremer took the reins of the clinic in the fall. He replaces Joanna Butler, who has taken a position with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in Battle Creek. Previously, Kremer was director of rehabilitation for the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired in Grand Rapids.

George Kremer

At the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Kremer had served as low-vision clinic coordinator for the past 19 years and as a Certified Vision Rehabilitation Therapist for 16 years prior to that. He is a member of the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired.

Kremer earned a master's degree in blind rehabilitation from WMU in 1980 and is certified through the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation & Education Professionals.

About the Vision Clinic

The Vision Clinic is a premier eye-care facility that offers comprehensive vision-care services to people with significantly reduced eyesight and, more recently, to the local community as well as WMU students and employees. Part of WMU's Unified Clinics, it is located in the University Medical and Health Sciences Center off of Oakland Drive.

WMU has been conducting research in low vision and blindness as well as preparing teachers for the field for more than 50 years. The Vision Clinic has been an integral part of that work, providing students in the Department of Blindness and Low Vision Studies with necessary practical experiences.

"We're very fortunate to have a facility like this in our area," Kremer says. "But there are many more people in southwest Michigan who can use our services."

He adds that he hopes to improve service usage by opening a store where people with low vision can view and purchase aids that are available to help keep them living independently. Some of the items to be carried in such a store include large-print calendars, talking watches, writing aids and large-print playing cards.

For more information about WMU's Vision Clinic, visit the WMU Unified Clinics website at http://wmich.edu/unifiedclinics.

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