DOLLAR GENERAL LITERACY FOUNDATION AWARDS $15,000 TO COOSA VALLEY TECHNICAL COLLEGE FOUNDATION

Reinforcing its commitment to help people gain basic literacy skills, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation announced that it has awarded Coosa Valley Technical College (CVTC) Foundation with a $15,000 grant. CVTC will use the funds to further their literacy and basic education outreach efforts.

“The Dollar General Literacy Foundation is excited by the work Coosa Valley Technical College Foundation is doing and their positive impact on the community,” said Dollar General CEO Rick Dreiling. “We are proud to help our neighbors take a major step toward improving their quality of life by supporting CVTC’s literacy initiatives.”

“We are very appreciative of Dollar General’s support of our Adult Education program,” stated CVTC’s President Dr. Craig McDaniel. Lives are being changed daily through our literacy effort and we can continue our progress with the assistance of great business partners like Dollar General.”

Since the Dollar General Literacy Foundation’s inception in 1993, it has improved the functional literacy of adults by providing grants to nonprofit organizations dedicated to the advancement of literacy. The Foundation has awarded more than $24.5 million in grants across our 35-state market area. These grants provide program support to nonprofit efforts to reach low-level literacy adults and their families. Adult basic education, GED preparation, English as a second language, family literacy and workforce literacy are among the initiatives that will benefit from these grants. In addition to cash grants, Dollar General’s in-store Learn to Read brochures have offered free literacy referrals to more than 50,000 people.

According to Susan Hackney, Executive Director of Adult Education at Coosa Valley Technical College, the grant money will be used for the Family Learning Center.

"We are really excited about this generous grant from Dollar General to fund a summer camp program for the Polk Family Learning Center in Cedartown,” said Hackney. “This camp will allow adult learners to bring not only their children age birth to preschool to school every day this summer, but also their school age children through age 12. The camp is designed to reinforce learning for adults and children and cement learning gains made during the school year. Parents participate in high quality adult basic education, GED preparation and/or English as a Second Language, while children are involved in high quality early childhood education activities.”

Hackney added that parent and together time activities are conducted to reinforce literacy practices as well as to be fun and engaging.

The Family Learning Center is one of many adult education sites across Floyd, Gordon and Polk Counties under the umbrella of Coosa Valley Technical College's Adult Education program. The summer camp will serve 30 adults and 39 children in June, July and August.

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation accepts proposals on an annual basis. The Foundation will begin soliciting 2009 proposals online on January 5, 2009. Proposals must be submitted by March 6, 2009. To place your name on a mailing list for future requests for proposals, send your organization's name, a contact name and mailing address to The Dollar General Literacy Foundation, P.O. Box 1064, Goodlettsville, TN 37072-1064. For more information on the Dollar General Literacy Foundation or for a complete list of grant recipients, visit www.dollargeneral.com.

About Dollar General

Dollar General is a leading discount retailer with more than 8,000 neighborhood stores. Dollar General stores provide convenience and value to customers by offering consumable basic items such as food, snacks, health and beauty aids and cleaning supplies, as well as basic apparel, housewares and seasonal items at everyday low prices. The company has a longstanding tradition of supporting literacy and education. Since its inception in 1993, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation has awarded more than $24.5 million in grants to nonprofit organizations, helping more than 350,000 individuals take their first steps toward literacy, a general education diploma or English proficiency. To learn more about Dollar General, visit www.dollargeneral.com.