Susan Crisafulli, president of the Imagination Library of Johnson County, smiles with a cardboard cutout of Dolly Parton. (Photo/Arianna Hunt of The Franklin)
FRANKLIN—According to the proposed Indiana House budget, the Dolly Parton Imagination Library (DPIL) will no longer receive state funding.
“If the budget cuts go through and things are up in the air right now, then we lose 50% of our funding by the end of June, which is obviously a challenge that would require us to do some quick and intense fundraising to be able to pay for our program,” Susan Crisafulli, president of the Imagination Library of Johnson County, and professor of English at Franklin College, said.
Beginning in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has mailed free age-appropriate books to enrolled children each month from birth until age 5. One in seven children in the U.S. receive books from the Dolly Parton Imagination Library. In Johnson County, the program has reached over 170,000 books mailed, with 4,712 kids in the program.
Following the negativity around the budget cut for the DPIL, Braun recruited First Lady Maureen Braun to raise private funds for the program in Indiana through philanthropic partners and state leadership by June 2025.
“No other statewide program has ever sought out public funds. They’ve all been funded through the legislature, which is my preference,” Crisafulli said.
“[State funding] is a mark of … the legislature saying, we believe in children and the importance of books and literacy and education, and we think it’s important enough that we’re going to put our money where our mouth is.”
Although Crisafulli would like the money through Maureen Braun’s proposed fundraising rather than none at all, she is worried what private funding would look like and what would happen if it was unsuccessful.
“I’m a big fan of the preventative approach, and I would, I would emphasize that it not only saves the education department, but kids with strong literacy are less likely to end up as juvenile inmates,” Crisafulli said.
“They’re more likely to graduate high school, they’re more likely to be contributing members of our society who are earning a paycheck and paying taxes. Like all of that is to the benefit of the state of Indiana.”
Community involvement
Jenny Cataldi, director of the Office of Global Education at Franklin College, had just adopted her oldest son when Crisafulli started the Imagination Library of Johnson County.
“She reached out and said, ‘You should absolutely sign him up for this’,” Cataldi said.
Now that her first son is older, her younger son takes on the tradition.
“It just creates excitement around reading that I don’t think you can get just from the library, [which] is wonderful, but getting a book in the mail and something that you feel especially picked out for you, and it’s got their name on it, right?”
The Imagination Library of Johnson County has reached over 170,000 books mailed, with 4,712 kids in the program. (Photo/Arianna Hunt of The Franklin)
Imagination Library as a resource for foster families
Miranda Senteney, an interior designer in Shelbyville, learned about the Imagination Library of Johnson County when she and her husband met with their foster-care specialist.
“[The foster-care specialist] said that she refers every family that she signs up because it’s a way for kids to get access to books, you know, and it doesn’t cost the foster families anything,” she said.
Since every foster parent is in a different financial position, Senteney believes that DPIL is a good opportunity for foster families to provide free resources to their children in care.
“My husband and I were able to purchase books for the kids and give them what they need,” Senteney said. “But some families, if they’re fostering a lot of kids or they don’t have the financial means to just buy a book that they like at the store, it really gives them a way to provide for that child and help further the education at home.”
Beyond providing educational benefits, Senteney believes books offer children a sense of comfort and confidence, which can be especially valuable in foster care.
“I think books, in general, do wonders for kids. It opens them up to a lot of different possibilities and gives the most small escape from the moment,” Senteney said. “The foster son I have now, he’s about to turn 5 months old, and he absolutely loves [me] reading [to him].”
After children leave her care, Senteney can pass on their DPIL information to the children’s caregivers to give them that resource for as long as possible.
“We’ve had a few different foster kids, and reading has always been something that allows their vocabulary to grow. It gives them confidence in other things that they do,” Senteney said.
This article was originally published in Franklin College’s campus newspaper, The Franklin.
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