Hamilton County Schools, in partnership with Governor’s Early Literacy Foundation, announces the launch of a Book Bus that will bring books and literacy resources to neighborhoods in Hamilton County.
Hamilton County Schools is one of 12 local partners in Tennessee that was awarded Book Bus grant funding from GELF in 2023. The bus had a soft launch before the bus was fully wrapped to deliver books and literacy activities to students at Summer Reach 2024 sites.
“We are excited to utilize the new Hamilton County Schools Book Bus to deliver decodable readers, high quality books to build background knowledge and provide foundational literacy skills activities to our youngest students in the county,” said Breckan Duckworth, executive director with Hamilton County Schools.
Through GELF’s Book Bus program, partnering school districts retrofit a decommissioned school bus to house literacy resources.
These Book Buses then travel to neighborhoods and community events during the summer, creating an engaging learning space for families. Many serve communities faced with challenges to book access, such as library deserts or low-income neighborhoods, and partner with organizations offering additional services, such as food programs or health care providers. Educators distribute resources and lead reading workshops to combat learning loss and increase adult-child engagement with literacy.
Officials said, "Research shows that students who do not read over the summer lose two to three months of reading proficiency (a phenomenon known as Summer Slide) causing a student to already be behind at the start of the following school year. Reading four to six books has the potential to mitigate, stop or even reverse 'Summer Slide.'
"GELF launched its Book Bus program in 2018, in partnership with local school systems, to establish mobile libraries that provide children and communities with access to high-quality resources. Driven by a mission to strengthen early literacy in Tennessee, GELF’s Book Bus program aims to combat student learning loss and promote a culture of reading outside of school by providing continued access to high quality books and literacy tools."
“We are very proud of the Book Bus program and are grateful for the local partners in every community, who make this initiative possible,” said James Pond, GELF president. “By bringing mobile libraries directly to Tennessee neighborhoods, we want to meet kids where they are, where they play, where they live, with the resources they need to continue reading and learning outside of the classroom.”
GELF provides two different grant opportunities for interested partners to launch or support an existing Book Bus in their community. The annual grant cycle opens in the spring. With support from Delta Dental of Tennessee and other corporate funding partners, GELF has provided grant funding to support 43 Book Buses.
For more information on how to apply or locate a bus near you, visit GovernorsFoundation.org or email bookbus@governorsfoundation.org.