Uh 601.

I will um call this ad hoc to order.

Um, as far as quick introductions, I'm Holly Robinson, um, city councilwoman and chair.

To my left, I have councilman Mike Henry.

To my right, I have Councilman Ben Chinese.

Looks like we have um, and I'm I'm sorry, Kara.

I think the last ad hoc I had, I did not introduce you.

It's quite alright.

I like that.

Cara Prenti, I'm Dan Garrick, and um you guys want to introduce Katie Pearson, library director and Julia Dennon, innovation and sustainability librarian.

I write the grants.

Okay.

Taylor O'Brien, Chief of Staff and Mayor's Office.

Caitlin Gruce Assistant Corporation Council.

Excellent.

Um I believe that the order business that we have today is a this looks like a non-match library literacy grant for um uh Dollar General Literacy Foundation.

Yes.

This is a youth literacy grant for the amount of five thousand dollars with no city match required.

Is that correct?

Yes.

I guess I'm directing my questions to the um I don't think a presentation is necessary, but I think Councilman Henry, you wanted additional questions.

Yeah, just a few things and line of some.

I'll give you the floor.

Yeah.

Um, it's a normal that's a normal process for you for grants.

How many do you write a year usually?

Uh goodness, I think since I've been here, probably 10 or 15.

10 or 15.

This is the first one for this year.

Uh no.

No.

Okay.

I just asked them.

No, it's on the agenda, yeah.

I think you've done Dollar General grant.

I yes, I have I've got to do that.

This is recurring.

No, so they're two separate.

So Dollar General has about six grants that they do every year.

Um, so one that I won last year for last summer was the um summer reading grant.

It was $3,000.

It funded our summer reading program for the kids.

This is the youth literacy grant, so it's separate from it.

It's $5,000 instead of three, and it's um less of a time frame constraint because the other one was only for summer.

This one we can run over about six, eight month period.

The initiative is to bring forward.

Yeah, so I'm actually really excited about it.

I used to be a teacher, and one of the big things that I saw in terms of getting literacy was to get access to the parents.

A lot of times if the parents don't understand the system, the parents don't understand how to teach how to read with their kids.

That breaks down, you know, what you what you teach in the classroom is hard for them to learn, but they don't get reiterated at home.

And so the goal of this was to break it up into two parts.

One would be giving um direct literacy instruction to K2 kids, the other one is giving instruction to parents in specifically in Spanish and in other languages, so that because they specifically in the schools sometimes they don't have things that are translated to them, they don't send um portals work, sometimes they can't communicate with their teachers.

So beginning of the school year to get them all set up so that their kids can be really ready for the school year.

And through the chair won't work for this.

Yes, please.

And so this is I mean, this is a small dollar amount, so not gonna achieve the whole initiative that you want, but you need more probably to go through this process, right?

Then five thousand?

Not now, I'm just saying in future wise for your program, which you're trying to if we wanted to run it again next year.

I can potentially apply to this exact same grant because we haven't won it for two years in a row, or I could take it to other grant programs.

Or if you guys want to fund it, we would love that.

Yeah, that's fair.

You have any questions, Ben?

Before no question at all, so then one more follow up.

Yes, sir.

To Katie.

So friends and a family, how's the grant process go through there, or how do you receive money through friends of the family of the library?

Friends of friends of the Damory Library.

Yeah, yeah, but I don't think that's on your agenda.

No, that's yeah, it's I mean But I'm just looking for their funding sources.

How do you receive money through Friends of the Congress?

Yeah, so the so the Friends of the Library support all of our programming, right?

Um we request a budget from them every year, and they say yes or no, or they give us our certain dollar amount and then certain dollar amount and no more or no less, right?

Correct, correct.

And we we also apply for other grants through them as well because they are a 501c3.

Yes.

So sometimes we can't apply for grants through the city.

Okay.

For that reason.

And your G View initiative is what money you have at that point right now.

Okay, all right, appreciate it.

Thank you.

Um, and just as a clarifying question, the $5,000 you said it's I mean, I'm assuming it's like technology.

Yes, so a good portion of it is gonna be to purchase laptops, and those are gonna be used to teach them over the course of the six sessions.

We're gonna teach them how to use laptops, and at the completion of it, if they choose to come to all the sessions, they'll get to keep the laptop and the mouse.

And then so it also goes towards books, I believe, in our budget, and just some teaching materials like um pens and pencils and stuff like that.

Okay.

And I believe it was because this was in front of the council last year.

We had an adult literacy grant.

I think it was 10 grand.

I might was that correct?

I can't remember.

Um there was an adult literacy.

A number of years ago.

I don't think it was last year.

A number of years ago we did use it for ESL programming.

Okay, it's different, right?

Because this is more parents and kids.

Correct.

Yes.

Yeah.

Did you have any questions?

Okay.

Um I move that the ad hoc committee recommend that the city council receive the communications and approve the amended resolution authorizing the city of Danbury to apply for and accept a dollar.

General Literacy Foundation Youth Literacy Grant as presented.

Second.

Any further discussion on the motion?

All those in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed?

Okay.

Thank you.

Motion to adjourn?

So moved.

Second.

Thank you all.

Appreciate it.