Lee County Family Connection to receive reading grant

LEESBURG — Lee County Family Connection Inc. has been selected as a recipient of Worldreader’s Let’s Get Children Reading Grant. The grant program, which is in its second year, is designed to support community-based nonprofit organizations and educational institutions dedicated to opening up endless possibilities to children and families through reading and igniting their curiosity and passion for knowledge.

With deeper insights on how to engage families in reading to and with their children, the organization plans to support 60 grantees this year.

In March 2023, The Let’s Get Children Reading Grant opened to U.S. organizations working to solve the learning crisis by promoting family reading and building the reading confidence of parents and caregivers to support their child’s learning. After a rigorous selection process, Worldreader announced that Lee County Family Connection Inc. has been selected as a grantee.

“We are delighted to unveil the 2024 Let’s Get Children Reading Grant grantees,” Worldreader CEO Rebecca Chandler Leege said. “We are empowering organizations to make a meaningful impact on children’s literacy development and social/emotional learning. We are confident that by working together with our grantees, we can make a significant difference in children’s lives and reading outcomes.”

Lee County Family Connection Inc. officials said they are grateful for the opportunity to work with Worldreader, which will expand book access through BookSmart, build reading comprehension and emotional intelligence, and foster a love of reading among children.

The Let’s Get Children Reading Grant aligns with Lee County Family Connection Inc.’s mission that “All children are healthy, primed for school, successful when they get there and that all families are stable and self-sufficient and thriving in their community.” Organization officials say they look forward to using the grant to motivate families to read 25 books together, utilizing the BookSmart app.

“Literate Lee is our literacy strategy team that has been working collaboratively for many years, focusing on early literacy intervention from birth to age 8 with programs such as Books for Kids Book Clubs and Family Literacy Nights,” Patsy James, the executive director of Lee Family Connection, said. “Partnering with an international program such as BookSmart will add even more opportunities to provide accessible literacy resources to our children and our families in Lee County.”

For more information, contact James at (229) 500-6391 or email [email protected].

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