Shenandoah University’s Claude Moore Center for Literacy Receives $13,000 from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation to Support Family Literacy
Funds were awarded as part of a nationwide literacy campaign
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation (DGLF) recently awarded Shenandoah University’s Claude Moore Center for Literacy (CMCL) $13,000 in grants to support family literacy. The funds are a part of the foundation’s record-setting, one-day donation in May of more than $13.2 million to support adult, family, and summer literacy programs in the 48 states in which Dollar General operates.
The CMCL received a 2025 Family Literacy Grant ($10,000) to support its Let’s Read Together Program, an initiative that directly benefits Spanish-speaking English Language Learner students and their parents by equipping parents with a proven dialogic reading method and providing engaging workshops to significantly improve the children’s English literacy skills. It also received a 2025 Summer Reading Grant ($3,000) to support Camp Read-A-Lot, a summer program held at Title 1 schools, that addresses literacy challenges in high-need schools, focusing on minority and economically disadvantaged students, including English Language Learners (ELL).
“Thanks to the Dollar General grant, we’re launching a multi-faceted program to support early literacy for EL learners and their families,” said Shenandoah University Children’s Literature Program Director & Professor of Curriculum and Instruction Karen Huff, Ed.D. “It’s not only providing high-quality bilingual books to families but also empowering parents with research-based reading strategies and improving their English skills, all while giving our undergraduate, graduate students, and ELL teachers invaluable experience.”
“For over 30 years, the Foundation has been investing in literacy and basic education programs in our hometown communities,” shared Denine Torr, executive director of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. “Today’s grant announcement is a celebration of our unwavering commitment to student and teacher success. We are grateful to all the grant recipients for their commitment to advancing education and helping students thrive.”
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation supports organizations that increase access to educational programming, stimulate and enable innovation in the delivery of educational instruction and inspire a love of reading. Each year, DGLF awards funds to nonprofit organizations, schools, and libraries within a 15-mile radius of a Dollar General store or distribution center to support adult, family, summer and youth literacy programs. The Foundation also offers a student referral program for individuals interested in learning how to read, speak English, or prepare for the high school equivalency exam. Referrals to a local organization that provides free literacy services are available online or through referral cards found in the Learn to Read brochures that are available at the cash register of every Dollar General store.
The foundation also plans to launch its sixth annual The Yellow Glasses Project campaign on July 21, 2025, in which customers can purchase yellow sunglasses at Dollar General stores for $2 each to benefit the DGLF.
About the Dollar General Literacy Foundation
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation is proud to support initiatives that help others improve their lives through literacy and education. Since 1993, the Foundation has awarded more than $271 million in grants to nonprofit organizations, helping more than 23 million individuals take their first steps toward literacy, a general education diploma or English proficiency. Each year, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation provides financial support to schools, nonprofit organizations and libraries within a 15-mile radius of Dollar General stores and distribution centers. To learn more about the Dollar General Literacy Foundation or apply for a literacy grant, visit www.dgliteracy.org.
