National nonprofit powering book access and ownership for students is poised to expand with new leadership; welcomes school partners for the 2024-25 school year
DENVER, Feb. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Book Trust announces the appointment of Patience Peabody as the nonprofit organization's new President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Peabody brings 20 years of experience to the national organization that ensures book access and ownership for more than 60,000 students annually.
Peabody brings extensive management and strategy experience in the nonprofit, philanthropic, and government sectors to her leadership role with Book Trust. This includes two decades of leading and supporting organizations through strategic realignments, internal transformations, program and external affairs innovations, and governance evolutions. Peabody most recently served as Executive Director at the Flamboyan Foundation, a private family foundation catalyzing educational equity through family engagement and early literacy in the United States and Puerto Rico. Her background includes a mayoral appointment to the DC Office of State Superintendent of Education and tenures at LIFT, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, and Share Our Strength. Peabody is a Board Member of the Congressional Hunger Center and a Trustee of Friends Community School. She graduated from Hampton University with a bachelor's degree in marketing and earned a master's degree in global strategic communications from Georgetown University.
A native of Washington, DC and current Maryland resident, Peabody is an advocate for educational equity. "Book Trust's work has a deeply personal resonance. Growing up navigating housing and economic insecurity, books were crucial to helping me imagine a future that was different than what was around me," she explains, "I developed a love of reading that I enjoy to this day and have passed on to my own children. Book access, ownership, and choice can have trajectory changing impacts on children now and for generations to come."
Peabody is committed to expanding culturally relevant book access, inspiring a love of reading, and promoting a culture of literacy for children and families in communities across the country. Her passion, enthusiasm, and ambition will serve Book Trust well as the organization prepares to broaden its reach and impact from Brooklyn, NY to Maui, HI.
"This year we will provide more than 700,000 books to more than 60,000 students—a 24 percent increase—through school and district partnerships," said Stacey Kirkland, Chair of the Book Trust Board of Directors and outgoing interim CEO. "We are eager to continue bringing books to more students under Patience's leadership."
A highly sought after program with an interest list of more than 200 schools, Book Trust seeks new school and district partners for the 2024-2025 with the goal of supporting more than 70,000 children in building their personal libraries next year. Teachers, librarians, principals, and superintendents are encouraged to learn more about Book Trust and apply for the 2024-25 program at BookTrust.org/Apply.
About Book Trust
Book Trust increases book access for classrooms, schools, and districts to promote engaged reading. For more than 20 years, the national nonprofit has partnered with schools and districts across the US to create sustainable classroom routines that foster opportunities for student choice and agency, validate student interest through celebrating book ownership, and support teachers as they facilitate joyful reading experiences. Book Trust offers schools curated, developmentally and culturally relevant print book options for Pre-K through Grade 5 students—at no cost to students or their families—through a collaboration with the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books. Learn more at booktrust.org.
Media Contact
Rachelle Ferrelli, Book Trust, 1 720.780.6269, [email protected], booktrust.org
SOURCE Book Trust
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