Proudly Sponsoring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library (DPIL) is a successful and impacting book gifting program that mails high-quality books monthly, to children from birth to age five, no matter their family’s income. To provide this resource free to families, DPIL partners with community sponsors, who agree to pay $25 per child, per year, and to help facilitate the enrollment process. Sponsors throughout the United States and other countries range from the smallest community organizations, to State governments. In January, 2023, the Imagination Library program gifted its 199 millionth book.
Washtenaw Promise is a proud sponsor of DPIL in the Ypsilanti area and now sustains an enrollment of over 1000 children under the age of five. We believe this program provides books to children who may see few in their homes, while providing Moms and Dads greater opportunity to read with their children consistently, a simple act that has proven to be profoundly impacting on a child’s ability to learn critical literacy skills at an early age.
The impacts of this program have been extensively studied since its inception in 1995. DPIL has been the subject of numerous research projects across the country, a host of articles in professional journals and careful scrutiny by early learning literacy experts and educators. As home-based literacy programs develop, stakeholders are asking for evidence that program goals are being met and the best cost-to-benefit ratios are being achieved. For more information on this, please visit their website at https://imaginationlibrary.com/
After careful review of the data and research, we are confident that this program is impacting and extremely important. We hope that we can continue to increase enrollment in the Imagination Library in 2025!
