Every month, close to 5,000 Johnson County children find the magic of reading waiting in their mailboxes.
The books might be imaginative fantasies or picture books about nature. Some are silly stories while others are more educational, inspirational and thoughtful. All of them build reading skills during the most important developmental period of kids’ lives.
Since its founding in 2017, the Imagination Library of Johnson County has distributed nearly 200,000 free books to kids under the age of 5. Their work will continue, even if a decision made by Indiana legislators might make it more difficult.
State lawmakers removed funding for the Imagination Library from its two-year budget bill, taking away vital funding for the early literacy program throughout the state, including in Johnson County. While the decision would not mean the end of the program, it did threaten Imagination Library of Johnson County’s ability to reach readers moving forward.
“The fact that 50% of our funding is no longer included in the state budget does not mean that kids will be kicked out of the program or that the program will cease to exist. It simply means that we have to work really hard to make sure the program continues to exist by fundraising our hearts out,” said Susan Crisafulli, president and founder of Imagination Library of Johnson County.
But last week, First Lady Maureen Braun announced new fundraising initiative to expand and sustain Imagination Library across the state. The initiative establishes a public-private partnership aimed at supporting the book gifting program, according to an April 29 press release.
Until that private funding is in place, the state government will allow Imagination Library programs to use funding that was allocated in 2023.
“Reading opens up a world of imagination for kids, and having books in the home benefits children in school and throughout their lives,” Braun said in a statement. “I’m proud to champion this effort to keep Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library growing strong here in Indiana and to help Hoosier kids develop a lifelong love of reading.”
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is an organization founded by the legendary musician in 1995. The idea was to help children in her home of Sevier County, Tennessee, achieve their dreams, stimulating their imaginations and encouraging reading within the family at an early age.
Through her foundation, Parton was able to send every child in the county who signed up a book each month.
The concept is simple — children are mailed a free book each month from birth through age 4, for a total of 60 free books by the time they enter kindergarten. Children “graduate” from the program on their fifth birthday. The first book the children receive is “The Little Engine That Could,” which includes a welcome letter from Dolly. The last book they receive is “Look Out, Kindergarten, Here I Come!”
Johnson County founded a chapter of the Imagination Library in 2017 in response to low kindergarten readiness rates in the county. Organizers raised money to provide books for kids in different zip codes, starting in Franklin and adding communities as funding for the books has been available. Greenwood, with its dense population and a large number of children eligible for the program, was the last to be added in late 2022.
Participation in the program has been exponential, Crisafulli said. In October of 2022, the group had about 1,900 children signed up. Currently, they have more than 4,900. In April, the Imagination Library of Johnson County announced the hiring of its first director, Kelly Wright.
To pay the approximately $6,000 the Imagination Library of Johnson County pays each month for books, local organizers have sought out grants and donations from supporters and various organizations, such as the Johnson County Community Foundation and 100+ Women Who Care, who awarded the group a no-strings-attached grant for more than $10,000 on May 1. They also host a Storybook Breakfast fundraiser each year.
But the organization received a huge boost in 2023, when then-Gov. Eric Holcomb signed legislation to expand the program to children in every zip code in Indiana. The legislation allotted $6 million over a two-year period — $2 million in the first year and $4 million in the second year, as part of a community share to expand the program.
“That funding helped our organization to exist,” Crisafulli said. “Our enrollment has grown so rapidly … We’ve grown 3,000 kids in two-and-a-half years. That state match money allowed us to survive that growth spurt and thrive during the growth spurt, to get more books in the hands of kids.”
But as the General Assembly put together its biennial budget bill this spring, funding for the Imagination Library was cut out.
“The funding from the state ends on June 30. Our understanding is that then we’d lose that state match and our bill will double starting in July,” Crisafulli said.
Hope that the funding would be replaced came with the announcement from the governor’s office last week, though. Maureen Braun will be collaborating with philanthropic organizations and state leaders to secure funding and raise awareness for the Imagination Library’s ongoing expansion, according to the press release. The initiative will bolster efforts to enroll more children across Indiana’s 92 counties and ensure the program’s sustainability for future generations.
“I deeply appreciate Gov. Braun’s commitment to early childhood literacy and the leadership of First Lady Maureen Braun in championing Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. The Imagination Library brings the joy of reading to over 125,000 Hoosier children each month in all 92 counties across the state, and we are encouraged by Governor and First Lady Braun’s support to ensure its future in Indiana,” said Jeff Conyers, president of The Dollywood Foundation, in a statement.
Imagination Library programs have been assured the state government will be allowed to use the funding that had been allocated in 2023, meaning the programs will not lose 50% of their funding on July 1.
With the developments of the past week, leaders of Imagination Library of Johnson County have greater assurances about the impact the state budget will have on them, though uncertainties still exist, Crisafulli said.
In the meantime, leaders hope that the community continues to support the good work they’re trying to do — either monetarily and by spreading the word about it.
“If they feel moved to make a donation or to sponsor a child, they can do that at our website,” Crisafulli said. “Of course, if they’re not in a position to support us financially, they’re welcome to follow us on social media and help us by liking and sharing and commenting.”