Promoting Early Literacy
Through Programs and Events
by Athena Hallowell , United Way of Aroostook
United Way of Aroostook ( UWA ) is a 501 ( 3 ) ( c ) organization whose mission is to mobilize resources to improve the lives of the citizens in Aroostook County , Maine . UWA works together with several county agencies to ensure the citizens of the area have the building blocks it takes to attain a happy , healthy , successful life . UWA and its agencies are focused on three basic areas which help to advance the common good of all people : Education , Health , and Income .
UWA finds ways to support an agency ’ s programming directly . For example , UWA has a long-standing partnership with Aroostook County Action Program ’ s WIC ( Women ’ s , Infants , and Children ) Program , which provides healthy foods , nutrition , education , screening and health care referrals to eligible pregnant and post-partum women , nursing mothers , infants and children under five years of age . Another agency backed by UWA is Aroostook Council for Healthy Families . This agency is focused on education and well-being and provides parent support and education through classes , trainings and written materials to strengthen parenting skills . It also has a free , voluntary home visitation program for first time parents and pregnant or parenting adolescents . Money collected through workplace campaigns and individual donors supports programs like these and many others . Without the backing of so many generous donors , UWA and the agencies it works with would be unable to sustain the level of services provided .
Katie Ramus and her daughters , Evangelina ( 7 ) and Ariyana ( 8 months ) enjoy receiving and reading their Dolly Parton ’ s Imagination Library books each month
do much to enrich and promote early childhood literacy throughout Aroostook County .
Beginning with the earliest readers , UWA hopes to promote early literacy with its Dolly Parton ’ s Imagination Library Program . This program sends one , age appropriate book each month to children from birth to age five , free of charge to families . The program was started in rural Tennessee in 1996 by Dolly Parton , but she wanted to see it expanded nationally . Currently it serves over one million children through almost 2,000 affiliates . The average affiliate sends roughly 500 books to children each month . United Way of Aroostook began funding this program for Aroostook County preschoolers in 2010 and is proud to say it currently sends over 2,150 books per month to preschool children in Aroostook County . The high interest books are often accompanied by reading tips to help parents enhance the read aloud experience for themselves and their young children . It is the intent of the program to have children exposed to and interacting with quality literature at a very early age to strengthen their literacy skills . Studies show that children who are routinely read to and are immersed in rich talk about the books they are reading thrive and are set for future academic success . Those children with less exposure to books face tougher learning challenges in school and beyond ( Campbell et al ., 2002 ; Dickinson , McCabe , & Essex , 2006 ; Neuman & Celano , 2006 ). UWA is committed to promoting literacy through the Dolly ’ s program .
Sometimes UWA finds ways to enhance already existing programs by creating their own programs and events . Such is the case with two , early childhood literacy programs and one event which is designed to raise awareness and money to fund the programs : The Dolly Parton ’ s Imagination Library Program , The Summer Slide Backpack Program , and the Book It for Reading Event . In combination , they
Parent feedback regarding the program has been positive . “ I can say honestly it benefits ALL of us . The entire family as a whole . It gives my partner and I reason to stop and read to our girls ! It helps my oldest daughter Evangelina , who is almost 7 years old , to practice reading and expand her love of the written word . And of course the baby Ariyana who is 8 months old is absolutely in LOVE with books . She not
28 SUMMER 2017