Ballard Elementary School receives Laura Bush library grant

Ballard Elementary School has been chosen to receive a library grant from The Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries. The grant is awarded to schools to update library book and print collections and to encourage students to develop a love of reading and learning. The grant, up to $7,000, can only be used to purchase books or magazines for the school.

Nancy Bacon, media specialist at Ballard Elementary, has one year to spend the grant money and will likely purchase hardback books for the school’s beginning readers, according to the Manatee County School District.

More than $831,000 in grants are being distributed to 130 school libraries, from 30 states this year, from the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Library. Ballard Elementary was one of nine schools in Florida awarded the grant. The other schools are located in Coral Springs, Crescent City, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Orlando, Sanford, and Vero Beach.

Since its inception in 2002, The Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries has awarded more than $13.4 million to more than 2,500 schools across the country.

Information: laurabushfoundation.org.

This story was originally published May 20, 2016 at 3:31 PM with the headline "Ballard Elementary School receives Laura Bush library grant."