Over the past seven years, Bright Minds Foundation has been honored to bring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, as called Read With Me, to families across Howard County. Together with generous community supporters, we mailed nearly 100,000 high-quality books to 4,278 children from birth to age five, helping build home libraries and joyful reading routines during the most critical years of early brain development. In November 2025, we were forced to end the program due to a lack of funding. As we close this chapter, we celebrate a program that has sparked imagination, strengthened families, and prepared young learners for school success.
This fall, more than 100 participating families responded to our survey, and the results affirm what we have long believed: access to books changes lives. 93% of families shared that their child now has more age-appropriate books at home, 63% reported reading together more often, and 86% said their child is more interested in books and reading and better prepared for kindergarten. Families also reported increased vocabulary, listening skills, and attention span—foundational skills that set children up for success in school and beyond. View full survey results.
The impact extended well beyond the youngest readers. At the Children’s Discovery Fair last summer, a mother of four spoke with us about her experience with the program. While her younger children eagerly awaited their monthly books, their older siblings began reading to them and developed a love of books themselves. The family visited their local library for the first time, obtained library cards, and began going regularly. The oldest child became immersed in mystery novels, and the mother began reading for pleasure for the first time in her life. One small book in the mailbox each month created ripple effects throughout an entire household.
Family comments echoed this story again and again. Parents described children “lighting up” when they saw a book addressed to them in the mailbox, insisting on reading it immediately, and returning to favorites night after night. Many shared that the program introduced them to diverse authors, new themes, and books they would not have selected on their own—expanding both their children’s and their own horizons.
While Bright Minds’ role as the local affiliate has concluded, the legacy of Read With Me lives on in thousands of home libraries and in children who now associate reading with joy, connection, and possibility. We invite you to explore the full family survey results and celebrate this impact with us. Together, our community proved that when we place books directly into the hands of young children, we are not simply delivering stories—we are opening doors to lifelong learning.
Bright Minds remains deeply committed to advancing early literacy in Howard County. This year, through a partnership supporting HCPSS Early Childhood and Pre-K programs and with support from the PNC Foundation, we will help provide take-home literacy toolkits to nearly 1,000 preschoolers—prioritizing children who are income-eligible, experiencing homelessness, in foster care, or living with disabilities. These toolkits place books and hands-on learning resources directly into the homes of our highest-need learners, extending classroom learning and empowering families. If you would like to support this critical work, we invite you to visit the link below and join us in ensuring every child in Howard County has access to the tools they need to thrive. https://brightmindsfoundation.org/donate/
About Bright Minds Foundation
Bright Minds Foundation is the Howard County public schools education foundation. We work to ensure each child in Howard County has access to the education, resources, and opportunities they need to succeed at school and in life. We do this by bringing together community support for programs and initiatives that increase education access, equity, and innovation. Bright Minds programs respond to the urgent and ongoing needs of children in four areas: early literacy, resources that remove barriers to learning, college scholarships, and teacher grants and support.
