Scholastic To Donate One Million Books for Superstorm Recovery

By Dennis Abrams

With more than 20 schools in New York still unable to open and dozens of schools in New Jersey still closed in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, Scholastic announced today that it will donate one million books to schools and libraries in the hardest-hit areas of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

To help in the recovery efforts with support for the educators, families, and students who have suffered losses, Scholastic is accepting book grant requests at www.scholastic.com/bookgrants, and will provide new books and resources that will help get tens of thousands of students reading and learning again. Scholastic will be working with the nonprofit Kids in Distressed Situations, to help distribute the million books to schools and libraries where they are most needed.

But more than books were lost: many teachers also lost instructional resources and lessons plans that they have assembled over the years. So Scholastic is also making available an array of free, grade-leveled lessons plans and activities for those educators. Teachers in neighborhoods affected by the storm will receive an email from Scholastic with a link to the free, downloadable, ready-to-use materials.

“The educators, parents, and caregivers, who are helping children in our hard hit communities throughout the region, are true heroes,” said Richard Robinson, President and CEO of Scholastic. “All of us at Scholastic are committed to getting these books, lessons plans and other learning materials into the affected communities as soon as possible in the hope that we can provide support for our young people as they return to schools that need extra resources.”

In addition, for educators, parents and caregivers, Scholastic is also providing free online resources to support children’s social and emotional recovery. To access these, visit Scholastic Resources.