EDWARDSVILLE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A group of Luzerne County high school students is partnering with a national organization to end book deserts and increase literacy for pre-K students.
The goal of the two organizations is to get books into the hands of kids whose families may not be able to afford them.
The Pennsylvania Key Club is teaming up with the Li-TEA-rary Society to give books to preschoolers across the state to help set them up for success.
Giving the gift of reading is the goal of local student leaders from the Pennsylvania Key Club and the Li-TEA-rary Society.
The two organizations joined forces to donate 44 books to preschool students at Luzerne County Head Start's Edwardsville campus.
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"The Li-TEA-rary Society was founded by a high schooler named Raina, and it's a non-profit organization, and its mission is to give children in disadvantaged homes their very own book to help end book deserts," Lily Kasa, PA Key Club District Governor, explained.
Kasa says she learned about the Li-TEA-rary Society at the Key Club International Convention.
"The Li-TEA-rary Society has already spread into 50 states, but we wanna bring it more into Pennsylvania," Kasa stated.
Across the Keystone State, post-pandemic learning gaps are persisting. Leaders at Luzerne County Head Start say early reading programs like this help put their students on the road to success.
"So early literacy and early language is so crucial. It even starts at birth and before, but for our children, we're really getting them ready to go to kindergarten. So we want them to be able to be exposed to more language, more literacy, more books," said Beth White, Executive Director at Luzerne County Head Start.
And from the smiles on students' faces, it's clear the books are a big hit.
Wednesday marked the start of a statewide initiative between the PA Key Club and the Li-TEA-rary Society. They plan to bring books to preschoolers in centers across Pennsylvania.
