Books Break Educational Borders
Books Break Educational Borders
A world without books would be a world in turmoil. At Books Breaking Borders (BBB) we strive to not only provide every child with a book, but every child with the tools and supports necessary to get the guidance to thrive and excel in any learning environment.
Whether it's donating hardcover books, kindles, educational supplies or building bookshelves in communities, we work to meet the needs of children because books should be one of the necessities of life.
A book today, means a smarter tomorrow, as ensuring every child can read at or above grade level creates a more balanced world. A better place for us all with a leveled playing field so we all can succeed together.
"Books Breaking Borders: Books to End Educational Bankruptcy," was founded in October 2013 by University of Maryland-College park students by Founder Kelsey Nicole Nelson and co-founder Joel Vazquez. The pair created the idea while being apart of the 2013-2014 Rawlings Undergraduate Leadership Fellows cohort which is apart of the University of Maryland's School of Public Policy.The program was designed and fostered to: Helping make educational materials more accessible for low-income youth, while providing tutoring and mentoring to increase graduation rates and help students pass standardized tests to continue on to the next grade level. Specifically, this organization has been catered to helping marginalized minority children gain more access to books. Today, we are proud to have partnered with local and national sponsors to help make this a reality. Early on with support from the Maryland Design Impact Lab, which is comprised of Maryland architecture students, the group was able to help design and build custom made bookshelves for children int he DMV.
At Books Breaking Borders, we believe in no children being lefty behind and instead that all children should be brought along.
To many of our Black and Brown children across the country are falling behind with grade level expectations.
Held Year Round
Through our books drives, children and families are able to select a wide range of free diverse books (both hard copy and kindles). We also ...
Held Year Round
Come Win Prizes
We invite you and your family to come and participate in one of our community spelling bees!
Come Win Prizes
Now Held Virtually
Sign your family up for one of our reading workshops where you will be paired with a community mentor to assist with reading comprehension.
Now Held Virtually
Afterschool programs have been the heart of Books Breaking Borders as we work with them to build mini libraries in their facilities so children always have adequate access to books!
Working with schools and school district, Books Breaking Borders partners with teachers, principals, librarians and paraeducators to make sure every child has access to quality books and reading materials.
Through our nonprofit groups that work with children and families we work together to provide additional academic support.
We work with coaches and student-athletes to ensure success in and out of the classroom!
Message from our Founder, President & Chairwoman Kelsey Nicole Nelson. Kelsey is a member of the Education Leaders of Color and she was named a 2022 NAA Next Generation of Afterschool Leaders honoree.
Your support and contributions will enable us to continue to provide workshops, books and mini libraries free of charge. Your generous donation will fund our continued work.
To best serve the communities we parter with, we work to determine their individual needs. We set up initial meetings with communities members and students to hear from them, what's impacting them most so together we can work to find a solution to the problem. We have partnered with the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington (BGCGW) to donate over 1,000 books and multiple bookshelves to the Boys and Girls Club in Southeast, DC and Northeast, DC. We also have hosted spelling bees and provided educational prizes for the winners.
Books Breaking Borders established in 2013 in the DMV and has since grown to the USA and Canada.
Be the first to hear about upcoming special events, workshops, book drives and more!
Volunteer with us today! Student service learning hours and college credit is available to interested students. If you're interested in one of our open positions, start by applying here and attaching your resume.
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