The Imagination Library is a book gifting program created by Dolly Parton to inspire a love of reading in young children, from birth to age five. The program sends high-quality, age-appropriate books directly to children’s homes each month at no cost to families, helping to build their home libraries and to encourage early literacy.
To meet our partners…
Melody Easton, Executive Director of notes the parallel mision and vision of First 5 Nevada County and Imagination Library. First 5 NC promotes the importance of early childhood by investing in complex systems of care, empowering families, and strengthening the community. Investments in the early years, when children’s brains are developing and taking permanent shape, are the best investments we can make.
The first five years are the most rapid period of brain growth, with nearly 90% of brain development occurring by age 5. This remarkable growth happens in response to a baby’s experiences. Experiences in the early years affect the physical structure of the brain and shape the capacities children will have for the rest of their lives.
First 5 Nevada County works on behalf of all children prenatal through age 5 and their families in Nevada County; but focuses on those who face significant risks and challenges to achieving their maximum physical and socio-emotional health and learning potential.
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Northern California
Ha
llie Anderson is a Community Engagement Coordinator for
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library of California. She spends her "9-5" supporting and growing local Imagination Library programs all across Northern California and the Bay Area counties. This week, Hallie will be visiting Nevada City Rotary Thursday July 17 for our 5:30pm Social at Round Table Pizza. She will be sharing the magical power of the
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library transforming the lives of young children at their most critical impressionable learning stage. And expanding our Club’s vision for implementing the program throughout our community.
Hallie grew up in Grass Valley, and supporting the soon-to-be Imagination Library of Nevada County is her heartfelt privilege. Hallie will share more about the program and progress towards launch, as well as ways Nevada City Rotary can be champions of early
Dollywood Foundation
The Dollywood Foundation partners with local 501(c)(3) nonprofit and other dedicated organizations and local leaders in the community who work together as Local Program Partners.
The Dollywood Foundation was created in 1988 by Dolly Parton to inspire the children in her home county to achieve educational success. Initial efforts focused on decreasing the drop out rate in the county’s high school. In the early 90’s Dolly promised every 7th-grade and 8th-grade student she would personally give them $500 if they graduated from high school. This effort, called the Buddy Program, reduced the drop out rate for these two classes from 35% to 6%. More importantly, the program catalyzed the community to provide additional resources to sustain this improvement in the drop out rate.
In 1995, the Foundation implemented Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Sevier County, Tennessee. This monthly book gifting program for children under five focused on inspiring a love of books and reading for all preschool children in the county. What was founded as a local program grew into an international movement through the unique partnership among the Foundation, the publisher, the fulfillment centers and the thousands of local organizations who adopted the program. The Imagination Library continues to be the signature program of the Foundation.
