Transmenu powered by JoomlArt.com - Mambo Joomla Professional Templates Club

The boards of both the Allegan County United Way (ACUW) and Allegan Area Education Service Agency (AAESA) were pleased to receive notification of the awarding of two grants for the Imagination Library program from the Allegan County Community Foundation (ACCF).

The Allegan County Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a joint program of both the ACUW and AAESA. The mission of the program is to provide high quality books to all Allegan County families with children from birth to five years of age. The program received the ACCF 2008 Legacy Grant for $5,000, and the ACCF 2008 TAG (Teens Aiding Growth) Grant for $2,000. 

“The process of learning to read starts long before kindergarten”, shares Denise Van Dyken, AAESA Director of Early Childhood and co-chair of the program.  “The experiences children have between birth and school entry will have a profound effect upon their ability to acquire literacy efficiently and effectively.”

“Our schools are dependent upon the parents of its preschoolers to provide a rich language background if the children are to learn to read with facility once formal instruction begins” states Mimi Gabriel, United Way Director and co- chair of the program.  “Research shows us that children who enter school with serious language and print deficits struggle with beginning reading and often never become competent readers despite the schools’ best efforts to remediate them.” 

Some risk data related to low literacy in Allegan County are:

·         More than 50% of children entering kindergarten had scores on early literacy assessments that put them at some risk of reading failure in 2006. 

·         According to 2004 US Census data, 38.6% of families of young children live below 200% of poverty, thus qualifying them for such services as free or reduced lunch.  That’s nearly 2,800 children in Allegan County from birth to age five.

·         Nearly 550 (7.6%) children from birth to age five live below the poverty line. 

·         More than 1,152 (15.9%) of Allegan County’s children are born to mothers who do not have a high school diploma.

·         The families of the most at-risk children in the Allegan County community lack the economic resources to purchase children’s books, thus their children are particularly at risk for not being read to in their early years. 

·         While the program successfully serves more than 1,700 children in Allegan County, more than 600 families have submitted enrollment requests to the Imagination Library but can not be served due to lack of funding.

Allegan County Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library program’s board includes representatives from the ACUW, AAESA, local school districts, the Allegan County Education Association, the Allegan County News, area businesses including the Perrigo Company and Meijer Inc., Allegan General Hospital, the Allegan County Health Department, Allegan’s regional 4C office, home visiting and parent education programs, libraries, and the Allegan County Literacy Initiative.  A Steering Committee, comprised of the chairs of several sub committees meets every month to monitor referrals and enrollment, review fund raising and income, and expenditures, marketing, evaluation, and ongoing follow-up activities.  Each sub committee meets regularly to carry out the tasks of maintaining the program.  The Board meets twice annually for program updates, joint strategic planning, and shared decision making.

Along with this generous grant from the ACCF, funding for the program come from United Way Campaign contributions, events such as golf outing events and a Fenn Valley wine tasting event, donations from generous businesses and organizations, and individual donations.

For more information  contact either the Allegan County United Way (269.673.6546) or Allegan Area Education Service Agency (269.673.2161).