State Library Receives an additional $450,000 over 3 Years for Early Literacy in Libraries

In 2019, the Colorado State Library received a $150,000 Preschool Development Grant from the Colorado Department of Human Services to increase public library outreach to informal caregivers via 3 part-time regional early literacy librarians, professional development, and local library events and materials for family, friend, and neighbor caregivers (FFN).

This funding has now been extended, and will continue for the next three years: 2020 through 2022 with $150,000 annually for this program.

Throughout the summer and fall of 2019, the State Library’s three Early Literacy Specialists, Kate Brunner (southern region),  Melody Garcia (metro Denver & northeastern region) and Gail Yerbic (western region), offered GRT Quick Bites, a series of online micro-learning opportunities, GRT@Your Library, a four part outreach webinar series, presented at the CLEL Conference, the Fall Youth Services Workshops, and have offered or plan to offer workshops in Ignacio, LaJunta, Pagosa Springs, Pueblo (Community College), and Yuma. They are also supporting initiatives in Delta, Erie, Montrose, and other libraries.

We look forward to an additional three years of focus on early literacy in Colorado.