State will take up funding for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

OLYMPIA - Dolly Parton founded her Imagination Library in tribute to her father, who was unable to read and write. It helps families worldwide have access to free reading materials, sharing the love of reading and the power of books with their children. 

In 2022, the state Legislature, in partnership with the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), expanded access to the Imagination Library to all children in Washington aged birth to 5. This allowed for each of these children, regardless of their zip code or their families' income, to receive a high-quality and age-appropriate book each month at no cost to their family. 

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library program is affordable and scalable. Each book costs $2.60, with half of the cost covered by local partners and the other half typically funded through the state budget. The program in Washington serves 120,000 children and operates in each of the state's 39 counties. 

This past legislative session, legislators faced a $12 billion budget shortfall. Although they fully protected basic K–12 education, they made tough choices in other areas of the budget. Funding for early learning programs, including Transition to Kindergarten and the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program, was reduced, and all funding for the Imagination Library was removed from the state budget. 

"Washington's youngest children cannot afford to have their opportunities for early learning cut to this extent," said State Superintendent Chris Reykdal. "While I plan to advocate for renewed funding in the supplemental session next year, the Imagination Library of Washington risks losing its effective, statewide infrastructure if funding generated from the statewide match is halted for even one year. Through limited discretionary funds, my agency will keep this program funded for one more year with the goal being to obtain permanent funding from the Legislature next session." 

To enroll your child in the Imagination Library program, follow the link at the bottom of this article. It's easy and free to sign up. Additionally, families can choose to participate in the program's bilingual option, which provides books in both English and Spanish. 

"We are grateful to Superintendent Reykdal and OSPI for their investment in and continued support for the Imagination Library," said Brooke Fisher-Clark, Executive Director of the Imagination Library of Washington. "This program has the potential to be absolutely life-changing for Washington students, and we already see through rising kindergarten readiness scores that our efforts, along with other early learning investments, are making a difference in our children's learning. As Dolly Parton often says, 'you can never get enough books into the hands of enough children.'"

For more information, visit http://www.imaginationlibrarywashington.org