Chief Joseph School of the Arts (Meridian) - Bucks for Books

This Donation will buy a book for Chief Joseph School of the Arts in Meridian. Their Librarian says "The school library is a place where students can embrace the love of reading. We are a multilingual school. 13 different languages are spoken at Chief Joseph Elementary. A quarter of our students are learning English. With this grant, I would love to purchase bilingual books for our library. I don't want any of our multilingual students missing out on enjoying a great book. We currently have a small selection of Spanish books. I'd love to add to our Spanish collection. I'd also love to purchase books written in Bosnian, Russian, Portuguese, Swahili, Arabic, Japanese, and Bantu. Here, at Chief Joseph, we believe that all students should have access to a wide variety of books in their own language."

In 2019, the Idaho Lottery learned 28 percent of Idaho elementary schools had a library budget of less than $100 per year for book procurement. In reality, it would take nearly $8,000 every year per school to maintain the library collection students need to succeed. With that in mind, the Idaho Lottery worked with the Idaho Commission for Libraries to start Bucks For Books. Literacy has been a focus of Idaho Governor Brad Little since he took office in 2019. Getting all Idaho students reading at grade level by the third grade is imperative as that is the point where students transition from learning-to-read to reading-to-learn. Having a well-stocked library and the ability for all students to take books home is crucial in getting all Idaho students where they need to be.