There is much evidence that when parents read to their children, the child benefits, but so does the parent. As a result, by frequently reading with children we can improve the family, the neighborhood, and the whole community.

And the economy. Children who have been read to are more likely to do well in school, to go to college, to earn more, and to enter stable relationships. They are less likely to succumb to teenage pregnancy, drug abuse, crime, or other harmful activities.

The Acadiana Educational Endowment & the American Public School Endowments (AEEo) has begun a program to encourage parents to read with their children in several ways:

Public Messaging: Several underwriters, together with Lamar Advertising, are helping us with billboard promotions, and these have begun appearing in the Lafayette market. Signage is also appearing on public vehicles. Both encourage parents to read to their children. We are expanding that program.

Reading Retail Spaces: We have installed Book-Book, a young children’s bookstore, in the Habitat ReStore in Carencro. We have other locations that have expressed interest in allowing us to install small and large bookstores.

Reading with Inmates: Two local sheriffs are working with the AEE, UL faculty, and UL Electrical Engineering Seniors to create a pilot program that will allow inmates to read to their children through the Internet.

Medical Provider Engagement: We have commitments from local hospitals to add prompts to the Electronic Health Record, reminding medical providers to encourage parents to read to their children at all prenatal and childhood visits. The involved hospitals and clinics have the potential to reach a large portion of the Louisiana’s families.

CajunFun.com: We are reviving our long-running Acadiana events calendar. While active, the website listed over 2,000 events, had over 5,000 subscribers, and each week published 14,000 eNewsletters, while attracting over 2600 visitors who viewed over 6500 pages. This website promotes books, libraries, theatre, arts & other culture, and in particular, free events for children.

Book Deserts v Little Free Libraries: Lafayette contains two large book deserts, in which homes contain few or no books. We are in discussions with local civic clubs and volunteer organizations to add ‘Little Free Libraries‘ (LFL) throughout the region, including novel locations such as laundromats, barber & beauty shops, recreation centers, churches, et al.

Reading in Schools: Local media and volunteer organizations are in talks with us to create a program that will enlist volunteers to read weekly to Kindergarten through 2nd grade classes. Community volunteers, including notable people, will sign up for 2 or 3 sessions each school year.