For Donors

How does the NBSF help support the literacy field?
Local literacy projects face major financial challenges as government support is decreased, even as increasing numbers of students sign up for literacy training. Before ProLiteracy established the National Book Scholarship Fund in 1995, literacy programs unable to purchase books for students and tutors often did without them. To get by, students would have to share worn out books with other students. Volunteer literacy tutors often used cast-off books, outdated resources and even photocopies to provide instructional resources for students.

What types of programs does the NBSF support?
The NBSF makes grants to literacy or educational programs. The NBSF supports family literacy initiatives, but also considers ESL, adult basic educational programs, and projects that involve women-focused basic literacy or ESL programming. The NBSF does not award grants to individuals.

What activities does the NBSF prefer not to fund?
Requests to provide books for lending libraries or other resource centers where NBSF materials are not directly linked to use with students receiving literacy instruction. Also, programs that request NBSF materials to use strictly as free distribution items.

What types of educational materials are available through the NBSF?
New Readers Press, ProLiteracy Worldwide’s publishing division , provides the NBSF with books and materials. These books are high quality instructional materials that are specially written for literacy students and tutors. The NBSF does not provide titles outside of those offered by New Readers Press.

What is the percentage of grant applications that are funded?
The NBSF has an extremely high approval rate. Nearly one out of every two grant applications submitted are funded.

What is the size of the grants awarded annually?
NBSF grants range from $500 to $2,000, although greater or lesser amounts of funding are considered. Grant requests significantly over the $2,000 level are not typically funded.

How do I know my donation to the NBSF is being put to good use?
ProLiteracy’s National Book Scholarship Fund has an outstanding track record. Every dollar invested has a direct impact on students and the tutors who instruct them. Key results since the inception of the National Book Scholarship Fund in 1995:

• More than 1,200 donors have provided $2.2 million to sponsor over 1,095 NBSF awards of literacy training materials to local literacy programs across the U.S.
• More than 25,000 volunteer tutors and professional instructors have been equipped with quality training resources from New Readers Press.
• At a cost of $6.43 per individual, 312,000 adults, youth, and children have benefited directly and indirectly from the instruction received through the NBSF awards.
• Diverse populations of learners have benefited from the NBSF including parents with low skills, basic literacy students, ESL students, prison inmates, and women in homeless shelters.

More than 85 percent of funds raised for the NBSF will be returned to the field as NBSF awards; a modest sum is allocated to cover program administration.