Organizations invited to apply to host a PRIME TIME reading program

Published 5:33 pm Wednesday, September 29, 2021

NEW ORLEANS — Community organizations that work with children and families are invited to apply for a grant from the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities to host a PRIME TIME reading program in Spring 2022.

Applications will be accepted between October 1 and October 15 at www.primetimefamily.org. Schools, libraries, museums, churches and other community-based agencies are eligible and must have a valid EIN# to apply.

“We are thrilled to have PRIME TIME available to Louisiana families again this spring and will adapt our programs as needed as recovery efforts from Hurricane Ida continue across our state,” said Shelley Stocker, LEH vice president of education programs. “During this application cycle, we are asking programs to let us know how they prefer to hold programming and are ready to support in person or virtual programs dependent on each communities’ needs.”

Organizations can choose to host a PRIME TIME Family Reading program for families with children ages 6 to 10 or a PRIME TIME Preschool Reading program for families with children ages 3 to 5. Each PRIME TIME program begins with a storyteller reading a carefully chosen children’s book. Families are then engaged in a discussion around the themes found in the book.

Organizations whose applications are approved are committing to hosting the 90-minute sessions once a week for six weeks. Priority for grant awards is given to agencies targeting educational and economically vulnerable populations.

Each partner site will receive a $1,000 site support stipend and a set of the children’s books used during the program, and participating families will be permitted to keep all books for their personal home libraries. There is no cost for organizations or families to participate in PRIME TIME reading programs.

“PRIME TIME provides all the training, books and support needed to make it easy for any community organization to implement a reading program,” said Miranda Restovic, president and executive director of the LEH and PRIME TIME, Inc.  “These programs offer organizations an opportunity to help families set aside dedicated time together to strengthen family bonds, while also promoting literacy within their own communities.”

Programs will receive notification of their application status in mid-November, with training for selected programs in January 2022.

PRIME TIME’s spring programs are made possible by the Baptist Community Ministries Foundation, BHP, the Community Foundation of North Louisiana, Cleco, Entergy Charitable Foundation, the Keller Family Community Foundation, The Lamar Foundation, The RosaMary Foundation, Shell, Union Pacific and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

For more information about PRIME TIME reading programs, visit www.primetimefamily.org or email primetime@leh.org.

About PRIME TIME, Inc.

PRIME TIME Inc. offers a set of unique, humanities-focused and outcomes-based programs designed to engage new and underserved children and families. PRIME TIME programs are proven to generate long-term improvements in family engagement and student academic achievement. All PRIME TIME based programs offer partner sites such as libraries, schools, museums and other community service agencies research-based initiatives that directly engage children, parents, teachers, educational administrators and the community in high-quality family-focused learning experiences. Learn more at www.primetimefamily.org.

About Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities

The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities to all residents of the state. Guided by the vision that everyone can realize their full potential through the humanities, LEH partners with communities, institutions and individuals to provide grant-supported outreach programs, literacy initiatives for all ages, publications, film and radio documentaries, museum exhibitions, public lectures, library projects, 64 Parishes magazine and other diverse public humanities programming. For more information, visit www.leh.org.