GRANTS & FUNDING

National Book Fund

Access funding for print educational materials through New Readers Press.

Grant Information

Grants provided through our National Book Fund assist literacy and basic education programs like yours by providing quality print materials through New Readers Press to enable you to better serve the students in your program.

Since 1995, the National Book Fund has helped programs provide basic literacy, adult education, and English language instruction, HSE and citizenship test preparation, and family literacy services.

What you need to know to apply.

National Book Fund grants are awarded annually in the spring. The application period is open February 1 – March 15.

We send award notifications by email approximately 45 days after the application deadline.

To be eligible for a National Book Fund grant, your organization must:

  • Have a clearly defined and specific need that the materials being requested will fulfill
  • Intend to use the National Book Fund materials directly with students receiving literacy instruction and/or with literacy staff, instructors, or volunteers
  • Not have received a National Book Fund grant in the last two years
  • Submit a complete application, answering all questions on the application and attaching all required documents as directed in the online application.

You will be required to submit a cash-funding match of 20% of the total grant amount you request. The cash-funding component is paid directly to ProLiteracy to help defray administrative costs of the National Book Fund enabling us to support more programs through the Fund. If your organization is a Member of ProLiteracy, this requirement is waived. Not a member? Find out more about membership and join today!

FAQs

We send award notifications by email approximately 45 days after the application deadline.

Our National Book Fund does not fund requests to provide materials for lending libraries or other resource centers where the materials are not used directly with students receiving literacy instruction or for the enhancement of an adult or teen literacy initiative. Also, we do not award National Book Fund materials for strictly free distribution.

 *Please note that we will consider applications from a lending library or resource center that is requesting materials for collection development to develop or enhance an adult or teen literacy collection. Your application must clearly state your library or resource center’s role in supporting adult or teen education. 

National Book Fund awards provide print materials exclusively through ProLiteracy New Readers Press. These high-quality instructional materials are developed and written specifically to meet the needs of adult literacy students and tutors. The National Book Fund awards may not be used with any other publisher.

Approximately 65% of National Book Fund applications are funded.

National Book Fund grants typically range from $500 to $2,000, although greater or lesser funding amounts are considered. Grant requests significantly over the $2,000 level are not typically funded but will be considered as long as a clear programmatic and financial need is demonstrated in your application.

Yes! If eligible, your organization may apply to one or more of our three grant opportunities. Each of our funds—Literacy Opportunity Fund, National Book Fund, and Mobile Learning Fund—has a separate application with different requirements and deadlines, so be sure to follow the application guidelines for each. 

If you have more questions, please contact the grants administrator at [email protected].

Find other funding opportunities