Dumping out-of-date textbooks in a landfill didn’t sit right with Brian Richard, warehouse foreman with Charles County Public Schools (CCPS). So, the day representatives of the Book Project through the World Bank Family Network reached out to CCPS nine years ago was a good one. “We have not dealt with any other vendor since,” Richard said.
The Book Project was founded nearly 40 years ago after the wives of World Bank employees took a trip to Lagos, Nigeria, to inaugurate a library. Surprised to find the building empty, the women started networking with spouses of the bank’s staff to collect books. By 1983, the Book Project was launched. The nonprofit has shipped more than 3 million books to 100 countries over the years.
“We send all our used text and library books to them through a third party. Pallets at a time,” Richard said. “If I were to guess, I would estimate well over 100,000 books over the course of nine years.”
Recently, Richard visited the Book Project warehouse where he learned the impact CCPS is making around the globe. “I have learned that the number of children we have assisted is countless,” he said. “How could we not take part in something like this? Helping others is what we as a school system does — help others grow.”
About CCPS
Charles County Public Schools provides 27,000 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has 36 schools that offer a technologically advanced, progressive and high quality education that builds character, equips for leadership and prepares students for life, careers and higher education.
The Charles County public school system does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability in its programs, activities or employment practices. For inquiries, please contact Kathy Kiessling, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (students) or Nikial M. Majors, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 coordinator (employees/ adults), at Charles County Public Schools, Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building, P.O. Box 2770, La Plata, MD 20646; 301-932-6610/301-870-3814. For special accommodations call 301-934-7230 or TDD 1-800-735-2258 two weeks prior to the event.