YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee Receives $230,000 Grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation to Support Adult Literacy

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – June 1, 2021 – The Dollar General Literacy Foundation recently awarded YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee’s Family Learning Center a $230,000 grant to support its adult literacy program. This local grant is part of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation’s recent award of a $10.5 million donation to support summer, family, and adult literacy programs, representing the organization’s largest one-day grant donation in its 28-year history.“Dollar General has championed the YWCA’s literacy programs for decades, and we are truly grateful for the Foundation’s ongoing support and confidence in our work,” said Sharon K. Roberson, president and CEO of YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee. “Education is the great equalizer. It is the foundation for a healthy and successful society. We are honored to be able to provide adult education through our Family Learning Center to hard-working students who are dedicated to lifting themselves and their families.”This generous grant will enable YWCA to provide free adult education classes to more than 450 adults and help dozens more achieve their high school equivalency diplomas. YWCA’s Family Learning Center students account for more than one-quarter of all HiSET (formerly GED) graduates in the Nashville region."For nearly 30 years, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation has been proud to invest in literacy and education programs in our hometown communities," said Denine Torr, executive director of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. "The recent and significant shifts in the educational landscape have made the Foundation’s mission more critically important. As we work to create access to high-quality instruction for all individuals, we share our gratitude for the educators working to uplift and empower others. We hope these funds will have a meaningful impact on students and teachers across the country and look forward to seeing the positive impact they have on learners.”The Dollar General Literacy Foundation supports organizations that increase access to educational programming, stimulate and enable innovation in the delivery of educational instruction and inspire a love of reading. Each year, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation awards funds to nonprofit organizations, schools, and libraries within a 15-mile radius of a Dollar General store or distribution center to support adult, family, summer, and youth literacy programs.  The Foundation also offers a student referral program for individuals interested in learning how to read, speak English, or prepare for the high school equivalency exam.  Referrals to a local organization that provides free literacy services are available online here or through referral cards found in the Learn to Read brochures that are available at the cash register of every Dollar General store.About YWCA Nashville & Middle TennesseeFor 123 years, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee has helped women, girls and families in Nashville and Middle Tennessee build safer, more self-sufficient lives. YWCA is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. Programs include Domestic Violence Services, Girls Inc., AMEND Together, Social Justice & Advocacy, Dress for Success and the Family Learning Center. For more information, visit www.ywcanashville.com , follow us on twitter @YWCANashville , Instagram @YWCANashvile and find us on Facebook at facebook.com/YWCANashville .About the Dollar General Literacy FoundationThe Dollar General Literacy Foundation is proud to support initiatives that help others improve their lives through literacy and education. Since 1993, the Foundation has awarded more than $197 million in grants, helping more than 14 million individuals take their first steps toward literacy, a general education diploma or English proficiency. Cal Turner, Jr. founded the Dollar General LiteracyFoundation to honor his grandfather and Dollar General’s co-founder, J.L. Turner, who was functionally illiterate having dropped out of school in the third grade to support his family. The Foundation aims to provide support to schools, libraries and nonprofit organizations that seek to improve adult, summer, youth and family literacy initiatives.  To learn more about the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, visit www.dgliteracy.org.   # # #