Senator Cooney Hosts 'Dolly Day' To Build Support For Expanding Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

(ALBANY, NY) - Today, Senator Jeremy Cooney (D-Rochester) hosted ‘Dolly Day’ at the New York State Legislative Office Building to drive support for his bill (S3154), which would expand Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library program statewide. 

“Bringing Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to children across New York is about promoting literacy and a love for reading at an early age,” said Senator Jeremy Cooney. “As the son of an English teacher, this is deeply personal for me. The Imagination Library is a transformational program and with a multi-year investment, we can share the joy of reading and improve graduation rates. Happy Dolly Day!” 

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has proven to be successful across the nation with programs in all 50 states, as well as in individual chapters across New York State, including a successful program in Rochester. Senator Cooney’s bill would streamline the state program in New York by centralizing resources to foster, develop and sustain Imagination Library programs across the state. This will make it easier for local Imagination Library partners to promote and expand their programs, while making it more accessible for all children (birth to age 5) in New York.

In this year’s Executive Budget, Governor Hochul noted her support for a statewide program and expanding access to hundreds of thousands of children across the state. 

Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has become the preeminent early childhood book gifting program in the world. The flagship program of The Dollywood Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has gifted over 200 million free books in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and The Republic of Ireland. This is achieved through funding shared by The Dollywood Foundation and Local Program Partners. The Imagination Library mails more than 2.9 million high-quality, age-appropriate books each month to enrolled children from birth to age five. Dolly envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading and inspiring children to Dream More, Learn More, Care More, and Be More™. 

The program has been widely researched and results demonstrate the positive impact on early childhood development and literacy skills. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

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