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By Carey Reeder | Managing Editor

Earlier this month, Clanton Intermediate School was awarded a Dollar General Literacy Foundation grant by the dollar store company. The $4,000 grant was a part of Dollar General’s annual program that awards millions of dollars to schools and students across the United States.

This year, Dollar General awarded nearly $2.6 million across the United States to support more than 300,000 students.

“We are excited to make a difference in thousands of students’ lives through these donations,” Denine Torr, executive director of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, said. “We are proud to award these grants to literacy and education programs across the country and support their meaningful work of expanding children’s joy of reading and creating a foundation for future educational growth.”

CIS library media specialist Aimee Dobbs applied for the grant in the spring, and when the list of schools was released by Dollar General, Dobbs found CIS on the list. The school has over 600 students in grades fourth through sixth, and one of the main instructional goals for CIS is to achieve 100% literacy at or above the students grade level for all students.

The school has a reading software program that monitors each student’s literacy progress throughout the year. The goal of the program at CIS is to increase the students reading skills as well as increase overall academic achievement, and the grant will be applied to the program to enhance its effort inside CIS.

“This Dollar General Youth Literacy Grant will greatly support our school’s literacy program by providing high-interest reading materials and a greater selection and variety of books,” Dobbs said in a press release from Dollar General. “Our school is very grateful for this opportunity and for the financial support that Dollar General provides for local schools. Lastly, I would like to encourage the community to donate to the Dollar General Literacy Fund when you have the option to do so at the point-of-sale. Alternatively, you may also donate directly to our school library at any time.”