Jackson County Junior Leader Reader Gets Boost from Commission
UWKV staff and volunteers attended a Jackson County Commission meeting in March to thank that body for allocating $4,000 in county alcohol tax funds to United Way's Jackson County Junior Leader Reader program. The program provides free books for Holton, Jackson Heights and Royal Valley students in grades pre-kindergarten through fifth. Junior Leader Reader also engages community volunteers who take books to classrooms and read to students.
Junior Leader Reader (JLR) recently expanded to Jackson County after more than a decade of success in Shawnee County. The commission's contribution is the first made by a government partner to the program, which normally operates thanks to the generosity of business and individual sponsors.
Junior Leader Reader is one of UWKV's strategies in the area of Childhood Success, specifically in educational success and early/ongoing literacy. Originally launched for pre-k and kindergarten students, Jackson County's JLR model also includes the remaining primary grades. JLR continues to help families expand their child's personal library, picking up where another United Way partnership, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, leaves off when a child turns 5.
Scholastic Parents reports that findings published in the journal Social Science Research show that raising a child in a home filled with books positively impacts her future academic growth and job attainment. Specifically, as Pacific Standard reported, the study found that when it comes to standardized tests, “Regardless of how many books the family already has, each addition to the home library helps children do better.” That makes sense: A book-filled home encourages a culture of reading for enjoyment and talking about books.
Thank you to all our Jackson County JLR sponsors and volunteers! Anyone interested in sponsoring Junior Leader Reader can contact United Way of Kaw Valley. To volunteer, please visit our free online volunteer platform at https://bit.ly/JACOJLR. Current Jackson County JLR opportunities run from April 20 through May 1.
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