Little Libraries

Our largest and most rewarding project

The Rotary Club of East Salem has built and installed 11 Little Libraries in the northeast Salem area. These libraries were designed and built by Rotarians, and each library features a sticker indicating that it is provided by our club.

Our libraries are so busy, we can use up to 400-500 books in a month to fill them!

East Salem Rotary has consistently supported literacy in our area over time, by distributing dictionaries to local 4th graders for many years, by providing free books to children in the Northgate/Hallman neighborhood since 2021, and with the Little Libraries project, which was started in 2020. Reading helps build literacy skills that enable children to be prepared for school when they enter kindergarten, and helps ensure that they graduate from high school and are successful throughout their lives.

Our libraries are located near schools, multi-family housing developments, preschool programs, churches, in offices that provide services to families, and even in a managed micro-shelter site for homeless adults and children. They are all supporting children who live in high-need areas of the city, and who do not have a public library branch in their part of town. The overall reading proficiency of children living in east Salem is below the statewide average, so our local children need lots of opportunities to obtain books.

The club has partnered with many area agencies to provide books or funds to purchase books. Some of these great partners are the Marion & Polk Early Learning Hub, Marion County Community Resource Network, Mountain West Investments, the Book Bin, Escape Fiction, Community and Partners of East Salem (CaPES), Goodwill, Warehouse 360 (United Way), Fostering Hope Initiative, Salem Public Library, Keizer Community Library, United Heritage Financial Group, Mission Benedict, as well as donations from individual Rotary members. Books are provided in both English and Spanish to meet the needs of children in the area.

East Salem Rotary members have individually adopted libraries, which they keep stocked with books. However, the libraries are used so much, we have difficulty keeping up with the demand for books, particularly for younger children. Our club collects books on an ongoing basis. East Salem Rotary has received annual matching grants from the area Rotary district to help with the purchase of books, but the need is greater than the resources we have.

Why we support literacy

Building literacy and language skills helps children be kindergarten-ready, so they enter school with a love of books and ready to learn. This is important for school success because eventually they move from learning to read, to reading to learn.

NationwideChildrens.org, 2013
Literacy is essential to developing a strong sense of well-being and citizenship. Children who have developed strong reading skills perform better in school and have a healthier self-image. They become lifelong learners and sought-after employees.

www.readingrockets.org
Research indicates that children who are struggling readers in 1st grade are 88% more likely to be struggling readers in 4th grade. When children struggle to read in 4th grade, they are four times more likely to drop out of high school. That’s why there is so much attention on 3rd grade reading scores in our community and across the nation, because if children are not on track by the end of third grade, their chances for success decrease substantially.

Make Way for Books, 2021
Children introduced to reading early on tend to read earlier and excel in school compared to children who are not exposed to language and books at a young age.

American Academy of Pediatrics

The U.S Department of Education says 54% of adults in the U.S. read below the 6th grade level.

Mara Payne Smart, author of Reading for Our Lives: A Literacy Action Plan from Birth to Six

Five ways student literacy impacts a young mind:

Would you like to help support literacy in the east Salem area?

DONATE TODAY!

Complete your donation below using our secure Give Lively donation platform powered by Stripe, or you may mail a tax-deductible donation to the East Salem Rotary Foundation at P.O. Box 562, Salem, OR 97308. If you have new or gently used books to donate, please contact us at: eastsalemrotary@yahoo.com.