PELL CITY — The Imagination Library of Pell City School District has found more support, with a $10,000 grant being approved from The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham."We are thrilled," said Darla Sherman, Imagination Library of Pell City School District chairwoman. "We are very pleased the Community Foundation felt our project was worthy of their support at that level. This really gives us a good, solid base to ensure we will continue to grow and move forward."
The $10,000 grant was one of six the Community Foundation awarded to various non-profit agencies around St. Clair County, totaling more than $63,000.
"Education, and especially early education, has been a focus of the Community Foundation for many, many years," said Sandy Killion, vice president of grants and initiatives for The Community Foundation. "(Imagination Library) is such a new, exciting project. We hope that as other communities learn about this project they will be interested in forming a group like the one in Pell City."
The Imagination Library of Pell City School District is a replica of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, and promotes literacy for children.
The program supplies free books to children living in the Pell City School District, from the ages of birth up to 5 years old. Every month, every child enrolled in the program receives a free book in the mail, and the Pell City project is off to good start.
"We started June 4, and we enrolled 155 children that night," Sherman said. "It has grown to over 500 children in that length of time.
"The schools, and particularly the reading initiative teachers and the kindergarten teachers, are extremely excited about this. The prospects of what this program can do for children as they enter school in terms of increased literacy skills are tremendous. It increases their vocabulary, their awareness of books and how books work," Sherman said.
The Community Foundation gives out the type of grant received by the Imagination Library twice a year, and competition for the grants is tough.
"Usually during each grant cycle we will receive anywhere from 60 to 90 applications," Killion said. "Between 55 to 60 percent of those get funding, but we hardly ever give out the entire amount they ask for. We try to make sure we make enough of a grant to really have an impact.
"What really struck me in particular about the Pell City Imagination Library was that it was all volunteer driven, and the group that organizes it was so committed. The dedication and commitment of the volunteers was such that I knew an investment in this group was really worth while," Killion said.
For each child enrolled in the Imagination Library, the Pell City program must pay $27 per year, so outside funding is necessary to keep the program going.
"We have a lot of people giving us support and we’re really grateful for it," Sherman said. "We’ve received funding from a number of different sources, and since it’s an ongoing process, we’ll need ongoing support."
Sherman said she estimates there are about 1,800 children under the age of 5 who live in the Pell City school district and qualify for the program.
"I think this program is essential," Sherman said. "More and more they are discovering early childhood education is critical, because statistically children who are reading poorly into the fourth grade are probably still reading poorly when they graduate from high school.
"Early literacy skills for children don’t necessarily mean these children know their ABC’s, or are reading when they enter school. It’s having someone read to them and make them familiar with books so they understand the whole concept. I don’t think you can over emphasize the importance of them developing a love for learning and reading at home in a loving atmosphere, rather than waiting until they get to school and it becomes a chore," she said.
Any parent who has a child under the age of 5 is encouraged to register for the Imagination Library of Pell City School District by signing up at the Pell City Library or the Pell City Civic Center.
The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham also awarded five other grants to agencies serving St. Clair County, including:
o Alabama Architectural Foundation, $5,000.
o ARISE Citizens’ Policy Project, $25,000.
o Leeds Arts Council, $5,000.
o Literacy Council of Central Alabama, $12,500.
o St. Clair County D.A.Y. Program, $6,000.
