Excellence Coalition for Education, Literary and Library Services

About the Program

Category: Libraries (Best in Category)

Year: 2009

Project ExCELLS (Excellence Coalition for Education, Literacy, and Library Services) is a project that developed from a working partnership forged among librarians with the Fairfax County Public Schools, the Fairfax County Public Library, and the Van Noy Library at Fort Belvoir. The project, which resulted in a three-year grant awarded to the Fairfax County Public Schools in 2007 as well as other partnership activities, was developed to support the educational and social needs of the entire Fort Belvoir community. It is designed to encourage literacy, increase use of library facilities, improve student achievement, and increase participation in academic, social, and cultural activities through a schedule of workshops, reading services, author visits, educational tours, and help navigating Fairfax County and base services. As a result of cooperation among the three libraries, there is expanded afterschool programming, homework help, reading clubs, field trips, early literacy programs at a base preschool and more. The Kingstowne Library, located just outside Fort Belvoir, has seen increased attendance at its programs. It is a model for how a jurisdiction can assist the educational needs of transient military families within its boundaries.