I am a guide dog instructor, and I am working on a little research
project about different causes of blindness.  I am having trouble
finding useful information on how meningitis can lead to blindness. 
The web sites I have been relying on for other causes of blindness
either don't mention meningitis (NEI and other eye websites) or cover
the viral/bacterial/other causes, symptoms, and treatment, without
delving into side effects (Web MD, eMedicine, wikipedia).

The information is being gathered for a non-scientific audience and
does not need a medical level of detail--just basic information on how
the eye is affected by meningitis.

I have frittered away so much time (a) discovering, and then (b)
poking around Google Answers that I might as well submit this as a
question....plus, it looks fun!

Thank you in advance for your help.

Hi K8K9.  I am not a medical professional, but my research indicates
that meningitis affects the eyes mostly because the swelling of the
meninges (the lining around the brain and spinal cord) affects the
nerves leading to the eyes.

For starters: "Meningitis is an inflammation of the meninges, the
lining that protects the brain and spinal cord. It is almost always
caused by an infection, usually by a bacteria (bacterial meningitis)
or a virus (viral meningitis). In rare cases it can be triggered by a
fungus or parasite."
http://yourmedicalsource.com/library/meningitis/MG_whatis.html

When the meninges swell, that can cause compression of the optic
nerve.  That, in turn, can lead to blindness.

For example, here is a case of an 11-year-old boy who developed
blindness because of meningitis. 
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7748365&dopt=Abstract
He developed inflammation (swelling) in the "chiasmatic cistern,"
which is an area of the brain immediately adjacent to the optic nerve.
See http://www.vh.org/adult/provider/anatomy/BrainAnatomy/Ch2Text/Section09.html
for a good diagram of this area of the brain and how close these
structures are to one another.

Here is a discussion of meningitis leading to blindness in AIDS
patients.  Optic nerve compression is the leading cause, followed by
inflammation of the nerve itself.
http://www.aidsonline.com/pt/re/aids/fulltext.00002030-199903110-00018.htm;jsessionid=CLQHQ90fLOZACTZdblN3V1fE6JUczS58ptXI21r76GL1IMoV471G!-1679577767!-949856032!9001!-1

In either case, however, it is usually the intracranial pressure that
causes the optic nerve to fail.  According to a case review by Rex,
Larsen, Dismukes, Cloud, and Bennett (all M.D.):  "The only
therapeutic measures with any degree of consistent success were those
directed at reducing intracranial pressure."
(Catastrophic visual loss due to Cryptococcus neoformans meningitis,
Journal of the International AIDS Society, 1993)
http://www.aidsonline.com/pt/re/aids/selectreference.htm;jsessionid=CLQHQ90fLOZACTZdblN3V1fE6JUczS58ptXI21r76GL1IMoV471G!-1679577767!-949856032!9001!-1!1116442631172?an=00002030-199903110-00018&id=P24&data=00005792_1993_72_207_rex_catastrophic_%7C00002030-199903110-00018%23xpointer(id(R2-18))%7C1033910%7C%7Covftdb%7C

I hope you found this information helpful and interesting.

Thank you, this is exactly the information I needed.