Dolly Parton's Imagination Library comes to Rice County!
A new initiative was launched in September by Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to get an Imagination Library program in all 105 counties in Kansas. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that mails free, age-appropriate books to children from birth to age five, no matter their family’s income. The Imagination Library partners with a local 501(c)(3) to enroll local children ages 0-5 in the covered zip codes, funds a portion of the cost of the books and mailing costs, and promotes the program locally. The Imagination Library provides the infrastructure of the core program including managing the secure central database for the Book Order System and coordinating book selections and wholesale purchasing. It also incurs the cost of the program’s administrative expenses and coordinates the monthly mailings.
Sterling Kids Cove, a local non-profit that serves children in the USD 376 school district, jumped on the opportunity to provide this service to Sterling and Alden zip codes. Volunteers with Sterling Kids Cove reached out to the Rice County Community Foundation with a vision of getting all of Rice County covered. The Rice County Community Foundation’s Board of Directors loved the idea! All Rice County children are now covered through a grant from the foundation, except for Geneseo and Bushton already being covered by USD 112.
“I am grateful for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library program because I know how much my daughter loves books. It is special to have her receive a new book each month, and it is a great way for us to spend quality time together.”, Hailey Beachy Sterling Kids Cove Board member and mom. This program encourages children’s literacy and sparks a passion for reading.
To sign your child up for the program, go to https://imaginationlibrary.com/check-availability/?#selectedCountry=US
About Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has become the premier early childhood book gifting program in the world by mailing well over 90 million free books in Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and the United States. Currently, the program mails over one million specially selected, age-appropriate books monthly to registered children from birth to age five. Dolly’s vision was to create a lifelong love of reading, prepare children for school and inspire them to dream. Recent studies suggest participation in the Imagination Library program is positively and significantly associated with higher measures of early language and math development. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
Notable Awards & Acknowledgements
Together, Dolly Parton and her book gifting organization have received honors and awards for their dedication to enriching the lives of children everywhere.
The Best Practices award from the Library of Congress Literacy Awards (2014), recognition in Reading Psychology (2012), and the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval (2001), are among a few of the prestigious acknowledgments the program has received.