First Book, a national non-profit that provides low-income children with access to books, has donated 13,000 children’s books to the Syracuse University Literacy Corps which in turn donated them to the Syracuse City School District. As a result of this extremely generous donation every student in grades k-6 will receive a free book. First Book’s donation to the Syracuse community is part of a larger donation from Target Corporation’s Read With Me InitiativeSM. The Syracuse University Literacy Corps is a group of more than 200 Syracuse University students who tutor in the Syracuse City School District and at community based organizations across the City of Syracuse. The Literacy Corps is a member of First Book’s Campus Advisory Board, which means it helps channel First Book donations to the local organizations that need them most. To date, the Literacy Corps has distributed more than 30,000 First Book books donated to First Book in the Syracuse Community. In celebration of Together We Read Week over 20 local celebrities read to children in elementary schools across the District. Deputy Superintendent Christine Vogelsang, Mayor Stephanie Miner, Police Chief Frank Fowler, Fire Chief Mark McLees, Dr. Zaline Roy-Campbell, Cedric Bolton, Mary Nelson, Syracuse Crunch broadcaster Jason Lockhart and AL the Ice Gorilla joined Syracuse Chiefs Mascot Scooch and many others today in our schools. Rachael Voorhees, senior director of First Book’s national book bank, said the Literacy Corps was selected to receive a portion of the Target grant because the staff at First Book knew that Target’s donation would be stretched as far as possible. “We chose to give these books to the Literacy Corps because the organization has a long history of serving Syracuse’s children and is well respected across the city. This is one of the wisest, most responsible ways we can spend Target’s donation,” Voorhees said. Pamela Kirwin Heintz, the Director of the Center for Public and Community Service and the Associate Vice President for Engagement at Syracuse University, explained why donations from First Book are so important. “Books alone do not make a difference for children. It really takes a focused group of parents, teachers, literacy program directors across the community and organizations like First Book to make sure that children have the support they need to become proficient readers. That’s why we’re so excited about Together we Read Week. It fits our commitment to the community perfectly, and we’re going to make sure that in Syracuse, First Book’s donation is going to get to the people that know how to best use them.”