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  • Home
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Staff >
      • Sally Brown
      • Erin Hackenmueller
      • Candace Johnson
      • Arturo S. Menefee, Ph.D.
      • Nisa Miranda
      • Brian Rushing
      • Martha Whitson
  • Programs
    • Alabama Birding Trails
    • Alabama Indigenous Mound Trail
    • Alabama Communities of Excellence
    • Leadership Development
    • Outdoor Recreation
    • Planning and Community Development
    • Tourism Development
    • Your Town Alabama
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    • Arts, Culture and Heritage Project
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    • Flawless Delivery
    • I-22 Corridor Strategic Development
    • Landmark Projects
    • Living Legends
  • Partners
  • More...
    • Mural >
      • Submit a Mural
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  • Birding May 9

Books for the Black Belt 

​2023 Books for the Alabama Black Belt Campaign

January 30 - Feburary 24

The University of Alabama Center for Economic Development will launch the 17th annual Books for the Alabama Black Belt campaign on Jan. 30. UACED encourages University of Alabama students, faculty, staff and local residents to donate K-12 books to the campaign until Feb. 24. 

By donating books to students in Alabama’s 13 Black Belt counties, UACED strives to help children develop a love of learning and reading. UACED will donate the books to schools in Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Pickens, Perry, Sumter and Wilcox counties.

UACED will accept donations of new or gently used classic and award-winning books frequently found on school reading lists for K-12 children.

​Donors can bring books to donation boxes on campus in Honors Hall, Carmichael Hall, Wade Hall, Autherine Lucy Hall, the Reese Phifer Hall rotunda, Tuomey Hall, Pi Beta Phi sorority house, the Blackburn Institute office and the Student Government Association office.

Donors can also bring books to off-campus donation boxes at Ernest & Hadley Booksellers, United Way of West Alabama, Alberta Baptist Church and The House Tuscaloosa at the Stillman College Student Center. Monetary donations are also accepted; please make checks payable to “The University of Alabama” and mail any donations to:

ATTN: Books for the Black Belt
Box 870138 Tuscaloosa, AL 35487. 


Additionally, donors can drop off books and monetary donations at UACED located 621 Greensboro Avenue, open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

If you would like to donate but are not local to Tuscaloosa, we recommend purchasing a bundle of pre-packaged used books from The Book Bundler. The Book Bundler allows you to select books based on a certain age group, genre and condition of the books. If you choose to donate via The Book Bundler, please email UACED so we are sure to receive it. Ship your book bundle to our office at:

621 Greensboro Avenue Tuscaloosa, AL 35401.

Today, Alabama's Black Belt includes some of the poorest counties in the United States.  Along with high rates of poverty, declining populations and high unemployment, poor access to educational resources is a major concern for the future of K-12 students in this region.  The primary goal of the University’s campaign is to provide one book for each child in the Black Belt counties -- more than 30,000 books!  Please contact Erin Hackenmueller 205-348-7058 or eshackenmueller@ua.edu for more information. 
​

"A student that is not reading at the 3rd-grade level by the end of 3rd grade is four times less likely to finish high school. Today we have only 35 percent of our 3rd graders that are proficient in reading at grade level."

Source: Governor Kay Ivey, 2018

2022 Books for the Black Belt Campaign 

The University of Alabama Center for Economic Development (UACED) wrapped up the 16th annual Books for the Black Belt book drive in February of 2022. The month-long book drive ran from January 31 to February 25 and partnered with Culverhouse College of Commerce, UA Honors College, UA College of Education, UA Public Relations Student Society of America, UA College of Human Environmental Studies, Tuscaloosa Public Library, and UA Museums. Through the placement of collection bins around campus and donations from UA faculty, staff, students, and members of the community- 10,000 new and gently used books were collected. 

Source: ​WBRC Fox 6 News
Source: ​ WVTM 13 News

Campaign Impact 

  • 2022 collected and distributed over 10,000 books to 72 schools in 13 counties
  • 2021 No book drive due to COVID-19
  • 2020 collected and distributed over 2,152 books to 29 schools in 13 counties
  • 2019 collected and distributed over 4,800 books to 11 schools in 8 counties 
  • 2018 collected and distributed over 5,000 books to 12 schools in 6 counties
  • 2017 collected and distributed over 16,000 books to 53 schools in 13 counties
  • 2016 collected and distributed over 9,500 books to 40 schools in 10 counties

What kind of books are appropriate to donate?

The short answer is any classic literature texts and other award-winning schoolbooks (fiction and non-fiction) often available on public school library shelves and included on recognized reading lists, including the Accelerated Reader program. 

Reference lists for appropiate books

  • Caldecott Award/Honor Books
  • Carter G. Woodson Book Awards
  • Coretta Scott King Book Awards​
  • NCSS Notable Tradebooks
  • Newbery Medal Books
  • ​Printz Award Books​​
  • Pura Belpré Award​​​

News

UA collecting book donations for Black Belt School

The University of Alabama Center for Economic Development has launched its 17th annual Books for the Black Belt campaign to encourage UA students, faculty, staff and Tuscaloosa-area residents to donate books for K-12 students in the region. 

Students from Vestavia Hills High School donate to Books for the Black Belt - WVUA

Earlier this morning students from Vestavia Hills High School delivered thousands of donated books for the Black Belt. It’s all for The University of Alabama Center for Economic Development’s Books for the Black Belt Campaign. Vestavia hills students came to campus to drop off about 4,000 books they collected.  

Students collect thousands of books to go to underserved communities - WBRC

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (WBRC) - An ongoing effort to bring books to underserved communities in Alabama’s Black Belt just got a big boost as students from one central Alabama school spent months collecting books for the cause.

Students from Vestavia Hills High School donate books to the Black Belt - WVTM 13

Happening tomorrow, students at Vestavia hills high school will donate hundreds of books to students in the black belt. This is part of a campaign at The University of Alabama, which has collected more than 5000 books for kids in the region this year.   
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The University of Alabama 
Center for Economic Development -
Box 870138
Tuscaloosa, AL  35487
​621 Greensboro Avenue
Tuscaloosa, AL 35401
Phone - 205.348.7058
Fax - 205.348.6974
email - uced@ua.edu
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 The University of Alabama 254 Rose Administration Box 870114 Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0114 (205) 348-4890 © Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved