BCK lends helping hand to Collier's most underprivileged students
Photo courtesy of Wix.
Collier County Public Schools is home to about 14,000 economically-needy elementary school children. Consequently, being economically-needy comes a catalog of disadvantages, with low-literacy rates topping the list.
Book for Collier Kids vows to change that.
For the past 13 years, educators and supporters alike have dedicated their time to provide disadvantaged children with a new books each year. The organization has provided over a million books for thousands of children of low-income households in Collier county.
Sallie Williams, chair of the nonprofit, joined the organization since 2007 and has been committed ever since.
“Nora Kolmer, one of the founding board members, invited me to join the board. She described the organization as small but mighty with a great cause to make a big difference. I was hooked,” said Williams to the Naples Herald.
BCK donates almost 100,000 books annually to around 7,400 pre-Kindergarten to second grade students.
Students are chosen from Title I, or schools with high numbers of low-income families, elementary schools, or in Head Start Programs, an early childhood program for families meeting certain income guidelines, according to the CCPS website.There are a total 22 Title I schools and 18 Head Start programs in the county.
“Our mission is simple and pure. We believe that access to books is one of the key factors affecting literacy,” said Williams.
On a monthly to bi-monthly basis, a child is given a book with a personalized name plate to take home and keep—all free of charge.
Every book that is selected undergoes a specific vetting process to ensure each book is age-appropriate and related to each child’s current curriculum. Educators from the organization work with curriculum specialists and match each book with the students syllabuses.
“Each teacher is informed ahead of time of which book title will be distributed to the children so he or she may develop a lesson plan,” said Williams. “[Each child] receives their own to take home, share and cherish.”
All the books donated are purchased with an 80 percent discounts from retailers, said Williams.
A majority of the books are obtained through First Book Marketplace, a national children’s book retailer, while the rest are purchased from Book Bank, also a children’s book retailer. Nearly $.90 of each dollar donated go towards books, according to Williams.
Since the birth of BCK, over 98 percent of the families impacted have seen the value and effectiveness of the work given. There has also been “measurable improvements in Collier County’s children’s reading scores,” according to the BCK website.
This last February, the organization reached a milestone by providing over one million books for children in Collier County. The organization hosted a cocktail party and dinner at the Port Royal Club with keynote speaker Dr. Kamela Patton, superintendent of CCPS.
“We are so indebted to Books for Collier Kids for the thousands of books they continue to provide to our students who would not have books at home,” said Patton at the celebration.
“One million books is a lot of books. If you place 1,000,000 children’s books end to end, they would stretch from Naples to Miami and back again,” said Williams. “That’s a lot of books for children in need right here in Collier County.”
BCK collaborates with other non-profit organizations to offer opportunities to underprivileged children. Habitat for Humanity, along with Christ Child Society of Naples, work closely with BCK by giving children of the families helped a personalized library. Children are given between 12 to 15 books in a hand-made table top bookshelf, according to Williams.
“We believe this homecoming gift enriches the family and the children and encourages a spirit of reading and learning,” said Williams.
Young children of low-income families encounter a plethora of issues that accompany low-literacy rates. According to BCK, students in these conditions typically face academic failure, delinquency, teenage pregnancy, substance abuse, unemployment, low productivity and welfare dependency.
Two more elementary schools have been classified as Title I schools, with three more reaching over 75 percent of children who are economically disadvantaged, said Williams.
”BCK’s goal is to secure the financial support from private philanthropy and grants to meet the need, here in Collier County,” said Williams.
BCK is always looking for volunteers who wish to help with distribution or packaging of books. For those interested in volunteering, donating or for further information, please visit booksforcollierkids.org or call Sallie Williams at 239-391-4062.