A major funding cut has cast uncertainty over a beloved literacy programme that delivers free books to hundreds of thousands of young children, leaving many Missouri families worried about what comes next.
Thousands of children across Missouri could soon lose access to one of the state's most popular early literacy initiatives after lawmakers approved a sharp reduction in funding for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. The programme, which mails free age-appropriate books to children from birth to age five each month, has become a cornerstone of early childhood education since expanding statewide in 2023. While children already enrolled are expected to continue receiving books for now, state officials say new enrolments will stop from 1 July, the result of a reduction in state funding from $6 million (£4.46 million) to $2 million (£1.49 million) for the 2027 fiscal year.
