BY PAMELA GOULD

Spotsylvania Middle School has won a $4,000 youth literacy grant from Dollar General's Literacy Foundation.

The grant will help the school implement the Read 180 program in county middle schools, Principal Lane Byrd said.

"I'm really excited about the potential of the program and literacy gains we can see," Byrd said.

School reading specialist and sixth-grade English teacher Betsy Branham applied for the grant.

"The Dollar General Literacy Foundation is pleased to support the literacy efforts of Spotsylvania Middle School," Rick Dreiling, Dollar General's chairman and CEO, said in a statement. "The youth literacy grants are awarded annually at the start of the school year so that the funds are in place to have an impact on reading education and support."

More than $2 million in grants were awarded to 564 schools, libraries, community groups and nonprofit organizations, according to Dollar General spokeswoman Emily Weiss.

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation was formed in 1993 to support literacy and education for families and adults.

Pamela Gould: 540/735-1972
Email: pgould@freelancestar.com