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CHICAGO — The Dollar General Literacy Foundation has awarded a Youth Literacy grant in the amount of $249,431 to the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA).

“The Dollar General Literacy Foundation is proud to support efforts to help teens thrive and reach success through literacy,” said Denine Torr, senior director of Community Initiatives for Dollar General. “We are excited to partner with local libraries to engage youth in dynamic programs that can help develop them into leaders and prepare them for new academic horizons.”

With the funds from Dollar General, YALSA will provide mini-grants to libraries to support literacy focused activities for and with underserved teens, as well as teen summer learning and teen intern programs. Funds will also be used to provide collections of YALSA’s Teens' Top Ten nominees to libraries in need and update the Teen Book Finder app and database.

“The Dollar General Literacy Foundation has allowed YALSA to support innovative programming for teens and help teens build a path to achieve their goals,” said YALSA President Crystle Martin. “We are thrilled for the ongoing support and the opportunity to continue to champion innovative programming for teens through this partnership.”

ALSC will use the funds to provide 14 grants of $5,000 to ALSC members in public libraries to implement STEAM programming during out-of-school time, including after school and seasonal breaks. ALSC will also develop and share supplemental resources that will be made widely available to support the collaborative efforts of libraries their community partners.

“Many communities are just now becoming aware of the wide range of exciting opportunities for STEAM learning in local libraries,” says ALSC President Jamie Naidoo. “With this generous support from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, ALSC will continue to raise awareness about the innovative ways children’s librarians are engaging with young people in their neighborhoods.”

For more information about the Dollar General Literacy Foundation or for a complete list of grant recipients, visit .

About ALSC

is driven by more than 4,000 members dedicated to the support and enrichment of library service to children. Our members include youth librarians, literature experts, publishers and educational faculty. ALSC supports its members in engaging communities to build healthy, successful, futures for all children. To learn more about ALSC and how to join, please visit our website at .

About YALSA

The mission of the is to support library staff in alleviating the challenges teens face, and in putting all teens ‒ especially those with the greatest needs ‒ on the path to successful and fulfilling lives. For more information about YALSA or to access national guidelines and other resources go to , or contact the YALSA office by phone, 800-545-2433, ext. 4390; or e-mail: yalsa@ala.org.

About the Dollar General Literacy Foundation

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation is proud to support initiatives that help others improve their lives through literacy and education. Since 1993, the Foundation has awarded more than $160 million in grants to nonprofit organizations, helping more than 10 million individuals take their first steps toward literacy, a general education diploma or English proficiency. To learn more about the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, visit .

Angela Hubbard

Program Officer for Projects & Partnerships

Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)

312-280-1398

ahubbard@ala.org

Anna Lam

Communications Specialist

YALSA

800-545-2433, ext. 5849

alam@ala.org