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# Children’s of Alabama Opens Book-Program Route for 124,000 Children
- URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/state-news-alabama-2026-09-26-b/
- Published: 2026-09-26T16:42:53.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-26T16:42:53.000Z
- Description: Children’s of Alabama will give discharged patients under five a welcome book and enrollment materials for a statewide literacy program serving about 124,000 children across all 67 counties.
- Author: News Desk
- Tags: Policy, Alabama

Children’s of Alabama has become an enrollment partner for the state’s Dolly Parton Imagination Library, creating a new route for families with children under five to join the free monthly book program as they leave the hospital.

Under the [hospital pilot](https://www.childrensal.org/news/childrens-alabama-serve-enrollment-partner-dolly-partons-imagination-library?ref=theamericanquorum.com) announced September 25, children younger than five who are discharged from any of the Birmingham hospital’s 24 inpatient units will receive a copy of *The Little Engine That Could* and enrollment materials. The hospital described the arrangement as a way to put literacy resources directly into families’ hands during discharge rather than relying only on a separate public-awareness campaign.

Children’s of Alabama said the statewide Imagination Library currently serves about 124,000 children in all 67 counties and has mailed more than 3 million books since Alabama’s statewide launch in 2023\. A same-day [update](https://governor.alabama.gov/newsroom/2026/09/governor-ivey-proclaims-september-25-as-dolly-day-in-alabama/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) from Gov. Kay Ivey’s office placed enrollment above 121,000 and books mailed above 3.1 million, reflecting slightly different reporting snapshots but the same broad scale.

The program mails one age-appropriate book each month from birth through a child’s fifth birthday at no charge to the family. It is open regardless of household income. The hospital’s role is to provide the welcome book and enrollment materials; its announcement does not say that a discharge automatically enrolls a child.

Alabama established the statewide network through [Executive Order 729](https://governor.alabama.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/EO-729-Dolly-Parton-Imagination-Library-1.18.23.pdf?ref=theamericanquorum.com). The order made the Department of Early Childhood Education the lead agency, directed it to promote local programs in every county and required continuing parental choice. It also created a shared-financing structure: state appropriations support grants to qualifying local partners, generally with a dollar-for-dollar local match, while allowing hardship waivers.

That funding structure matters as enrollment grows. The Legislature’s [fiscal 2026 summary](https://alison.legislature.state.al.us/files/pdf/lsa/Fiscal/Infographics/FY26-ETF-Approps-Summary.pdf?ref=theamericanquorum.com) shows a $768,000 increase for the Imagination Library within a broader $12.4 million increase for early-childhood education. The executive order makes continuation contingent on sufficient state, federal, local and private funding, so the hospital partnership expands outreach without eliminating the need for annual appropriations and local support.

The practical value of the new arrangement is timing. Hospital discharge gives staff a direct opportunity to reach parents who may not encounter a general enrollment campaign, including families whose children have had inpatient care. Sending the welcome book home also demonstrates what the monthly program delivers before a family completes registration.

The initiative is limited in scope: it begins with one pediatric hospital system, and no enrollment target or evaluation schedule was announced. Its statewide significance comes from using a major health institution as an access point for an education program operating in every county. If the pilot increases completed registrations, the same model could be considered by other hospitals and pediatric providers, subject to the program’s funding and enrollment rules.