Children in Thurston, Mason Counties Can Now Access Early Literacy Through Imagination Library
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is one big step closer to becoming available to all of Washington’s youngest learners.
Last week, the Child Care Action Council (CCAC) officially launched its Imagination Library program as an affiliate, making the program available to families in Thurston and Mason counties. These two counties were the last two in the state that did not have access to the Imagination Library.
“Just with Thurston and Mason counties alone, [we’re] covering 20,000 more early learners that now have that opportunity,” said Brooke Fisher-Clark, Executive Director of the Imagination Library of Washington. “It’s really cool knowing that families now have that opportunity.”
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library sends an age-appropriate book to children birth through age 5 once a month, every month, at no cost to families. Affiliate programs partner with the Dollywood Foundation to provide this service to children living within the coverage areas.
In June, Governor Jay Inslee signed a law creating the Imagination Library of Washington, a 501(c)(3) organization that helps develop and sustain affiliate programs in each county in the state. The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has been supporting the expansion with an investment of federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds.
The CCAC offers a variety of services to children and families, including preschool programs, supports for other licensed childcare providers, and family support programs. Gary Burris, Executive Director of the CCAC, said the organization wanted to become an Imagination Library affiliate because of its commitment to supporting whole child development.
“Early literacy is a really huge, important piece for children’s development,” Burris said. “It’s also really key that parents are engaged with their kids. Early literacy really helps get them the foundational skills they need for pre-reading to be ready for school.”
Research shows that engaging with literacy at a young age supports children’s success years later.
“They are performing better in their kindergarten assessment, in their third and fourth grade reading and math,” Fisher-Clark said. “They are increasing their likelihood to graduate high school. It just does so much in the short and long term for a child’s life.”
Because the Imagination Library provides books for free, it can be especially supportive for families identified as low-income, since purchasing books continuously can be cost prohibitive for families.
“There are large parts of the Thurston and Mason county region where families are either living in poverty or are getting by but don’t have a lot of extra spending dollars,” Burris said. “In those cases, getting free books can be huge.”
Fisher-Clark confirmed that this equity-based approach is what makes the Imagination Library so impactful.
“You are literally breaking down, crashing, smashing barriers to books,” she said. “It goes right to the child’s home; it doesn’t matter what’s happening in the household.”
As the CCAC begins operating its Imagination Library affiliate, Burris acknowledged that it takes a community’s support for the program to be effective.
“Without the support of the businesses and individuals in the community that make programs like this happen, we wouldn’t have them,” Burris said.
He also wanted to highlight other local organizations that are investing in early literacy, like the South Sound Reading Foundation. Burris said he views their efforts as harmonious with the Imagination Library.
“More is better,” he said.
Ultimately, expanding access to early literacy has the potential to positively influence Washington’s education, health, and housing systems into the future.
“The more our communities in the state can get involved, either by helping other children to enroll or by helping to promote it if you’re a business, you are helping to polish our state and uplift our future generation of children to help us become that successful, thriving state,” Fisher-Clark said.
Additional Information
This story was written by Chelsea Embree, Communications Strategist at OSPI. You can contact the Communications Team at commteam@k12.wa.us.
