Includes $5M Investment from The Frist Foundation – the Largest Gift Ever Made to NPLF
NASHVILLE (November 26, 2024) — The Nashville Public Library Foundation (NPLF) announced that – only two weeks into public fundraising efforts for Begin Bright, a groundbreaking, new early literacy effort – they have raised 85% of their initial goal as area businesses, charitable foundations, the City of Nashville and several generous individuals have stepped forward with major commitments. This includes a $5M investment from The Frist Foundation – resulting in NPLF breaking 27-year giving records for the second time in just ten days. Last week, Dolly Parton announced a generous $4.5 million investment in the project, funded by her recent “Courage and Civility” award from Jeff Bezos. These two gifts are the largest gifts ever made to the organization.
“From the outset, we have known Begin Bright had extraordinary potential to catalyze the impact of both the Nashville Public Library and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, but honestly, we have been blown away by the excitement across the city to get behind this program. In literally ten days, we’ve broken every record on the books for support of the Nashville Public Library Foundation,” said NPLF President Shawn Bakker. “With this kind of early support, I am more convinced than ever that Nashville is going to light the way for the nation on how public-private partnerships can change the life trajectory of kids.”
Begin Bright is a new initiative aimed at ensuring every Nashville child starts kindergarten reading ready by combining Dolly Parton’s longstanding commitment to inspire a love of reading by gifting free high-quality books to young children with Nashville Public Library’s innovative and award-winning early literacy programming and new technology that will vastly extend the impact of those books – providing training and literacy resources for parents, childcare providers and more.
“The Frist Foundation believes in bold, transformative efforts that create lasting benefits for our community,” said Corinne Bergeron, CEO of The Frist Foundation. “Ensuring children can read is foundational to the health and success of a city. When early milestones are missed, the ripple effects on individual lives and the broader community are profound. We are proud to partner with the library and early childhood educators to ensure our city stands united in support of this critical effort—for the sake of our children and the future of our community.”
In addition to The Frist Foundation and Dolly Parton’s investments, countless others have played a crucial role in so rapidly reaching this milestone. Earlier this week, Nashville SC Owner and Chairman of Ingram Industries John Ingram committed $1M and co-hosted an event at Geodis Park with the Dollywood Foundation to urge other business and philanthropic leaders to follow suit. He was joined by Former Governor Phil Bredesen, Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell, and Imagination Library President Jeff Conyers as they outlined the opportunity and importance of leadership across the city joining in one of the largest public-private ventures in the city. The Sandra Schatten Foundation stepped up with the very first gift to the campaign of $2.5M and the Dettwiller Foundation and Mayor O’Connell (pending Metro Council approval) joined Ingram in each pledging $1M. Tennsco has generously donated all the shelving for 400 Little Libraries in childcare centers across Davidson County.
“Nashville has a great tradition of strong public-private partnerships,” said Mayor O’Connell. “I am so encouraged by the quick fundraising progress because that shows enthusiasm for the bold vision of Begin Bright. Supporting early literacy is one of the most important things we can do as a city because it gives our next generation the foundation they need for success.”
Kindergarten reading-readiness is a foundational skill that determines success throughout a child’s school career and life. Begin Bright is Nashville Public Library’s early literacy plan aimed at addressing kindergarten reading-readiness. The new initiative will deliver a Little Library filled with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Books and a host of NPL resources to every childcare center in the county. A new app will provide on-demand digital early literacy training for parents and teachers using NPL’s award-winning content. Vanderbilt University’s Prenatal to 3 Policy Impact Center will study the results, creating an actionable, measurable and replicable model.
The Foundation aims to raise an initial $20 million for Begin Bright. Funds raised will provide for implementation and to build an endowment that sustains the program. Nashville Public Library will roll out the program in the spring of 2025.
To Learn More:
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
by NPLF