The Imagination Library of Johnson County is launching a fundraising campaign following the Indiana General Assembly’s decision to eliminate state funding for the statewide initiative.
The Johnson County Community Foundation has contributed $500,000 toward a dollar-for-dollar matching campaign, the Johnson County organization said. The goal is to raise $1 million to establish a permanent endowment for the county affiliate of Dolly Parton’s early literacy program.
“This is where our community comes in,” Kim Kasting, president and CEO of the Johnson County Community Foundation, said in a news release. “We believe in the power of books and the impact of early literacy, and we know our neighbors do, too.”
The Imagination Library of Johnson County was launched in July 2017 in response to troubling statistics about school readiness and literacy rates. Since September 2017, the initiative has mailed over 218,000 books to Johnson County children.
Initial research data from the past three years indicate that Franklin Community Schools kindergartners enrolled in the Imagination Library for at least 4.5 years score higher on literacy tests than the school district average, the foundation said.
A separate fundraising effort is underway elsewhere in the state after state leaders eliminated funding for the statewide program as part of an overall effort to rein in spending. Former Gov. Eric Holcomb had expanded the program in his 2023 legislative agenda by designating $6 million for the initiative.
Earlier this year, Gov. Mike Braun tasked his wife, Maureen Braun, to raise money for the statewide Imagination Library through public-private partnerships. The Hoosier Hope Foundation helps lead the initiative.
In July, the CenterPoint Energy Foundation donated $500,000 toward that effort.
There are 96 Imagination Library partner organizations across the state.
For more information on how to donate to the Johnson County campaign, click here.