First Book Provides Books to Kids in Need

Kyle Zimmer, president and CEO of First Book, received a Lifetime Collective Impact Award to recognize First Book’s approach and cross-sector collaborations addressing the scarcity of books for children growing up in low-income families.

Kyle Zimmer

The award was presented Monday by Ideagen at its “Empowering Women” summit.

“With a lifetime commitment to collaboration, Kyle Zimmer and First Book are uniquely qualified to receive this award,” said George Sifakis, founder of Ideagen and president and CEO of Axela.

“Kyle has led an effort through First Book to distribute more than 110 million books to children in need. We look forward to her continued success at First Book and collective impact efforts that can truly change the world.”

In the U.S. alone, an estimated 32 million children – almost half of all children – are growing up in low-income households where books are scarce.

One study found that while children from affluent communities have access to about 13 books on a daily basis, in the poorest neighborhoods, there was only a single book for every 300 children.

“As we scale our efforts globally, the cross-sector support is even more critical to our success – and to helping bring a world of knowledge to children who need it the most,” Zimmer said.

First Book is a nonprofit social enterprise that has distributed more than 100 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families throughout the United States and Canada.

Photo courtesy: First Book