FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                

Marketing & Communications Director

The Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning

859-254-4175

Jmohler@carnegiecenterlex.org

Carnegie Center Announces 2013 

"Cycle of Literacy" Fundraising Campaign 

Lexington, KY- The Carnegie Center, which promotes literacy and literature in Kentucky, today launched the public phase of its Cycle of Literacy Fundraising Campaign with a goal of raising $1.2 million. The money will be used for programs that help children and adults with writing, reading, languages, computers and other vital skills.

"The Carnegie Center is committed to creating a cycle of literacy in Kentucky," said Executive Director Neil Chethik. "We start by teaching toddlers to love books, and we continue to educate children and adults at every stage of life.  When it comes to reading, writing and communicating, we step in where the public and corporate sectors cannot."

The Carnegie Center is a non-profit organization located on Second Street in the former Lexington Public Library, a historic building near Gratz Park in downtown Lexington. The Carnegie Center was founded in 1992 after the library moved into its new facility on Main Street.

The winner of two national awards and several local awards for outstanding programming, Carnegie serves about 5,000 people annually. The after-school tutoring program serves low-income families, providing tutors and space for 180 students each week. Carnegie also offers classes and conferences for writers who want to publish articles and books. Earlier this year, the Center created the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame to honor the Commonwealth's legacy of great writing and to inspire young writers.

"The Carnegie Center is unique in the nation," Chethik said. "There are literacy organizations and there are writing centers. But no other city has both of them under one roof. Our center brings together accomplished writers with struggling students, and inspires them all."

The Carnegie Center operates on $600,000 a year and depends largely on donations from foundations, businesses and individuals. Funds from the $1.2 million Cycle of Literacy Campaign will be used to deliver and enhance literacy programs over the next two years.

Chethik said that the fund drive started quietly last year and about $900,000 has been raised. The Center plans to raise the remaining $300,000 over the next six months, culminating with Carnegie Center's 21st Birthday Bash, scheduled for September 13 in Gratz Park.

Leading up to the 21st Birthday Bash, the Carnegie Center will host a series of events to show how the Center supports the business and cultural climate in the Bluegrass. Among the programs is a Literary Luncheon on June 8 at Elmendorf Farm featuring Nikky Finney, winner of the National Book Award last year. Finney, a UK English professor, wrote one of her books inside the Carnegie Center. Other recent Carnegie instructors include bestselling and award-winning authors Barbara Kingsolver, Silas House and George Ella Lyon.

Contributions in any amount toward the Cycle of Literacy Campaign are appreciated; contact Carnegie's Development Director Jennifer Mattox at (859) 254-4175 ext. 25 or  Jmattox@carnegiecenterlex.org.

The Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning empowers people to explore and express their voices through imaginative learning and the literary arts.

ABOUT THE CARNEGIE CENTER

The Carnegie Center is a family learning and literary arts center devoted to helping all people improve their quality of life. Our open-door policy invites people young and old to learn something new. We offer seasonal classes in writing, computer literacy, graphic design, and world languages; tutoring for students grades K-12; vibrant youth and family programs; literary readings, and other arts-related events, designed to encourage an appreciation for all art forms, and learning in general, among Central Kentuckians.

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