- In 2024, with the expansion of the Literacy Awards Program, the total amount of prizes available is $525,000
- Funding from the Kislak Family Foundation includes a new annual prize of $100,000 for an organization in the United States or abroad with an outsized impact on literacy
Library of Congress Expands 2024 Literacy Awards Program
The Library of Congress announced today it is expanding the scope of the Literacy Awards Program in 2024 by adding two new award categories to recognize literacy organizations in the United States and abroad. Applications are being accepted from Jan. 8 to Feb.19.
The annual Library of Congress Literacy Awards, sponsored by David M. Rubenstein since 2013, honor organizations that provide exemplary, innovative and replicable strategies to promote literacy in the United States and abroad. For more than a decade, the Library program has recognized the urgent need to achieve universal literacy.
The 2024 Literacy Awards are also supported by the Kislak Family Foundation whose gift includes a new annual prize of $100,000 for an organization in the United States or abroad with an outsized impact on literacy relative to its size and/or years of operation. A second category, the Emerging Strategies Honorees, will award $5,000 for up to five organizations. Furthermore, the Kislak gift will allow the Library to double the award amount for the Successful Practices Honorees Prize to $10,000 for up to 15 organizations.
In total, the program will award up to $525,000 this year to organizations working to advance literacy.
The awards are intended to draw public attention to the importance of literacy and the need to promote literacy and encourage reading. Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden will make the final selection of the prize winners with recommendations from an advisory board of literacy experts. Winners and honorees will be announced in September.
Four top prizes will be awarded in 2024:
- The David M. Rubenstein Prize ($150,000) for an outstanding and measurable contribution to increasing literacy levels. The prize is awarded to an organization based either in the United States or abroad that has demonstrated exceptional and sustained depth in its commitment to the advancement of literacy.
- The Kislak Family Prize ($100,000) for an organization based either in the United States or abroad with an outsized impact on literacy relative to its size and/or years of operation.
- The American Prize ($50,000) for a significant and measurable contribution to increasing literacy levels or the national awareness of the importance of literacy. The prize is awarded to an organization based in the United States.
- The International Prize ($50,000) is awarded for a significant and measurable contribution to increasing literacy levels in a country other than the United States. The prize is awarded to an organization that is based either in the United States or abroad.
Up to 15 additional organizations will be honored for their successful practices in various areas of literacy promotion. With the support of the Kislak Family Foundation, each successful practices honoree recipient will receive $10,000, double the amount awarded in 2023.
Finally, the program will award $5,000 each to up to five additional literacy initiatives in their early stages of development that demonstrate significant creativity and promise in their approach to promoting literacy.
The application rules and a downloadable application form may be accessed at https://www.loc.gov/programs/library-of-congress-literacy-awards/apply/. Applications must be received by 11:59 p.m. EST on Feb. 19.
An applicant information session will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 16 at 2 p.m. EST. Attendees must register for the session in advance.
The Library of Congress Literacy Awards Program is administered by the Professional Learning and Outreach Initiatives Office, a unit of the Center for Learning, Literacy and Engagement at the Library of Congress.
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Media Contact: María Peña, mpena@loc.gov
Public Contact: Judith Lee, jllee@loc.gov
PR 24-001
01/08/24
ISSN 0731-3527