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The Dollar General Literacy Foundation announced last week the award of approximately $438,000 in literacy grants to Kentucky nonprofit organizations.

These grants are part of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation’s largest one-day grant announcement, which supports summer, family and adult literacy programs. 

Jessamine County Public Schools is there recipient of a $5,000 grant from the Foundation.

In total, the Foundation awarded more than $8.6 million to approximately 970 nonprofit organizations, libraries and schools to support the educational journey of more than 663,000 individuals, which aim to enhance local literacy and education initiatives throughout the communities Dollar General serves.

“During these extraordinary times, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation remains steadfast in its commitment to support communities’ literacy and educational advancements through funds that will impact thousands of students across the country,” said Todd Vasos, Dollar General’s CEO and Dollar General Literacy Foundation board member.  “We are proud to support the meaningful and impactful work that each of today’s recipients conduct and support their ongoing efforts to help individuals improve their lives through literacy and education.”

Grant recipients plan to use awarded funds to promote literacy and learning across a variety of programs including promoting childhood summer reading, helping adults learn to read and prepare for the high school equivalency exam and helping individuals to learn English. Kentucky recipients are listed below and a comprehensive list of grant recipients may be found online at www.dgliteracy.org. The grants awarded to Kentucky organizations are expected to positively impact the lives of more than 8,000 residents. 

“For more than 26 years, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation has invested in programs that help uplift and empower others through education,” said Denine Torr, executive director of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. “In the wake of the pandemic as more youth are in need of academic support and an increased number of adults are looking to enhance their basic skills and employability, we proudly continue our support of basic education and literacy initiatives for individuals of all ages. We are grateful for the hardworking teachers and nonprofit leaders who are serving students in our hometown communities and hope these funds help advance their efforts.”

In addition to the adult, family and summer program grants announced today, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation is currently accepting applications for youth literacy grants through Thursday, May 21, 2020 until 10 p.m. CT. Youth literacy grants support schools, public libraries and nonprofit organizations in implementing new literacy efforts or expanding existing ones. Funding can be used to purchase new technology, equipment, books, materials or software to enhance literacy programs.

Each year, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation awards funds to nonprofit organizations, schools and libraries within a 15-mile radius of a Dollar General store or distribution center to support adult, family, summer and youth literacy programs.  Through partnerships with national literacy organizations like the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, XPRIZE Foundation and the American Libraries Association, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation supports organizations that increase access to educational programming, stimulate and enable innovation in the delivery of educational instruction and inspire a love of reading.

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation also offers a student referral program for individuals interested in learning how to read, speak English or prepare for the high school equivalency exam.  Referrals to a local organization that provides free literacy services are available online or through referral cards found in the Learn to Read brochures that are available at the cash register of every Dollar General store.