By Kris McDowell
Children’s literacy nonprofit SMART Reading is seeking community support to assist them in their mission of empowering young readers by donating gently used children’s books or hosting a book drive for their Children’s Book Bank. In particular, the organization currently has a shortage of board books and picture books aimed at preschool students.
Just 40 percent of Oregon third-graders are on track in reading and the Children’s Book Bank at SMART is a vital resource that helps children build literacy skills from an early age, distributing over 74,000 new and refurbished books to young readers in the Portland area each year. “Access to books is critical for children’s academic success and long-term well-being,” says SMART Reading Executive Director Jessica Bowersox. “We are committed to ensuring kids have high-quality, inclusive books to keep and share with their families.” With the community’s support, the organization will reach nearly 10,000 students who have limited access to books at home this school year.
Board books and picture books (books with less than a paragraph of text per page) for preschool students are urgently needed. In addition to picture books and board books, the Book Bank also accepts chapter books for students up to eighth grade.
Donations of new and gently used children’s books can be made to the Book Bank Monday-Thursday, 9 am-5 pm at their location (1915 NE 7th Ave.). People who would like to drop off books outside of those days and hours can email bookbank@smartreading.org or call 503.616.3981 to schedule a drop off time.
Both new and gently used books are accepted. The Book Bank, however, is unable to accept books with yellow pages, vintage books, musty or damaged books, ex-school library books, ex-library books, books for high school students or adults, magazines, coloring books, encyclopedias, textbooks, classroom sets or Kindles/tablets/e-readers.
The need for books is ongoing and community members are also invited to organize their own book drives to gather books for the Book Bank. “Book drives are a simple way for schools, workplaces and community groups to support literacy efforts,” says Bowersox. To facilitate a successful book drive, SMART provides all of the needed tools, including promotional materials. To learn more about getting started, visit smartreading.org/bookbank/organize-a-book-drive.
SMART Reading has been around since the early 1990s. It started with a group of concerned business leaders, led by Gov. Neil Goldschmidt, coming together in 1991 to address the troublesome reality that Oregon’s children were routinely reading below grade level. The organization’s unique model was developed, blending early childhood reading support, adult mentorship and community engagement to positively impact literacy outcomes. In 1992, the program launched in eight schools in two cities, serving 585 children.
SMART has steadily grown since its inception, becoming the state’s largest volunteer-driven nonprofit organization devoted to literacy, serving more than 373,000 children and giving away over four million books. Those numbers were achieved by the commitment of more than 147,000 volunteers logging 4.5 million hours reading with children across the state.
In 2022, SMART merged with the Children’s Book Bank, a Portland-based nonprofit founded by Dani Swope. Swope, a parent and former teacher who wanted to ensure that her children’s books got into the hands of kids who might not otherwise have books at home, started the Children’s Book Bank in 2008. In the beginning, she donated her books to a local Head Start program. Showing that there was a great need for books, Swope’s phone was ringing off the hook with people looking for the “Book Lady” and asking to sign up for her “program.”
The books collected are distributed as part of SMART’s two shared reading programs—One-to-One SMART and Classroom SMART. The programs positively impact literacy skills and outcomes by providing early reading support for learners, access to books and community engagement in a fun, inclusive environment for everyone involved. Based on their Theory of Changes, the programs employ two strategies: sharing one-on-one reading with a trained volunteer and providing books for children to take home and keep. SMART students choose two books per month to keep, helping them build their personal libraries and become lifelong readers.
For more information about SMART, including volunteering opportunities, visit smartreading.org.