Duval County has long trailed its urban peers in the state when it comes to producing proficient third-grade readers.
Rather than waiting for children to arrive in school to create a culture of literacy and reading, the nonprofit Kids Hope Alliance plans to use a $5.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Treasury to place books in the hands of mothers almost immediately after they give birth.
“It’s just a great way to connect with one another and build a bond, especially when they are really young,” says Kids Hope Alliance CEO Saralyn Grass.
Grass says the five-year funding will be spent to send nurses or pediatricians to under-resourced communities for in-home wellness checks, and to arm those health care providers with books to give to the families they serve.
The in-home visits are meant to reduce Medicaid patients’ reliance on taking their young children to emergency rooms for conditions that can be solved in a different arena. Literacy advocates say the early exposure to reading is vital to improving lifelong reading proficiency.