MARIO BATALI FOUNDATION TO OPEN NEW LAS VEGAS LIBRARY FOR AT-RISK
CHILDREN ON TUESDAY, MARCH 29
World-Renowned and Beloved Celebrity Chef Mario Batali to Officially Open New Books for Kids
Library, Read to Students
On Tuesday, March 29 at 9 a.m., Mario Batali will personally be on-hand to open the new Books for Kids Library at the Acelero Spring Valley Learning Center. This new library marks the third Southern Nevada library that has been funded by the Mario Batali Foundation and the 11th library nationwide.
The Acelero Spring Valley Learning Center serves 325 children, from the ages of one month to five years old, year-round with 65.6 percent of the children at the Spring Valley site live below the poverty line. Furthermore, statistics from The National Institute for Early Childhood Education Research estimates 90 percent of children’s critical brain development occurs by age five. Research also shows when children are reached with high quality, early learning experiences, they are 40 percent less likely to fall behind in school and 70 percent more likely to graduate from high school. Finally, numerous studies have shown access to books is an indicator of future reading and academic success.
The 161 square-foot library will hold nearly 1,000 books, many bilingual, offering a range of excellent reading material for children from 2 to 12 years old.
The opening dedication ceremony will take place at the Acelero Spring Valley Learning Center located at 2845 Mohawk Street, Las Vegas, Nevada 89146. In addition to Batali, children from the Spring Valley Learning Center, as well as special guests from the Mario Batali Foundation and the Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group, guests from Books for Kids and the Acelero Learning will be in attendance. The ceremony will include a ribbon cutting for the library, a book reading by Batali of Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs and Ham, as well as remarks from the Mario Batali Foundation; Books for Kids; Variety Early Learning Center and a special thank you from the children.
“Every child deserves a safe, engaging and welcoming place where they can learn, explore and dream (BIG)! I believe in the children of Southern Nevada and their potential.,” says Batali, chef/founder, Mario Batali Foundation.
“We are grateful for the continued support of the Mario Batali Foundation, who has been a wonderful partner of ours for the last five years. Through their generosity, they have improved the lives of hundreds of under-served children and families in New York and Las Vegas. We are thrilled they are expanding our reach in Las Vegas with a third library so more children in Clark County can be positively impacted by access to much-needed high-quality books and literacy resources,” says Amanda Hirsh, executive director, Books for Kids.
The Mario Batali Foundation has sponsored the building of three new libraries in New York City since 2011, in Manhattan on the Lower East Side, the Upper West Side, and Chelsea and has sponsored the renovation of five Books for Kids libraries in Brooklyn, New York. In the fall of 2014, they opened their first Las Vegas library, at the Acelero Learning Reach Out Center. In summer 2015, they opened a second Las Vegas library at Variety Early Learning Center. Additionally, the Mario Batali Foundation has funded three new libraries in Los Angeles that will also open in March 2016.
“What a wonderful opportunity this is for our children, families and program to have one of our esteemed community partners give such a generous and much needed donation. Thank you to the Mario Batali Foundation for donating another library that will be utilized by 325 children served by the Head Start program at our Spring Valley school,” concludes Rory Sipp, executive director, Acelero Clark County.
ABOUT BOOKS FOR KIDS
The mission of Books for Kids is to promote literacy among all children with a special emphasis on low-income and at-risk preschool-aged children. Books for Kids creates libraries, donates books, and implements literacy programs to develop the critical early foundation and skills which young children need to be successful in life. To learn more about Books for Kids, please visit www.booksforkids.org.
ABOUT THE MARIO BATALI FOUNDATION
Long before he was a household name, Mario Batali was a philanthropist. Whether donating his time, services or dollars, Mario has been actively involved in the charities close to his heart for many years to raise awareness and support for children’s disease research and relief, and hunger relief. Prompted by these philanthropic efforts, in 2008, Mario launched the Mario Batali Foundation. The Foundation strives to ensure that all children are well read, well fed and well cared for. To learn more about the Mario Batali Foundation, visit www.mariobatalifoundation.org.
ABOUT ACELERO SPRING VALLEY
The Acelero Spring Valley Learning Center currently serves 325 children ages one month through five years old. 65.6 percent of the children enrolled live below the poverty line. The mission of Acelero Learning is to bring a relentless focus on positive child and family outcomes to close the achievement gap and build a better future for children, families, and communities served by the Head Start program. Acelero Learning brings value to Head Start by managing programs well, providing high quality service, and never forgetting that caring is the most important thing for children and families. The Acelero Spring Valley site joins its sister site at the Acelero Reach Out Center, which also houses a Books for Kids and Mario Batali Foundation Library.
