At the beginning of the current school year, the Griffin-Spalding County School System pre-kindergarten program received a Transition Coach Grant worth $80,000.

The grant was to be used this school year for children ages 3 to 5 to promote literacy, provide additional family support services and help with the transition from day care or home to pre-K and then to kindergarten. The money may also be used to raise awareness and involvement in the community for those activities.

At the Griffin-Spalding County Board of Education meeting Tuesday, Pre-K and ESOL Director Louisa Melton spoke to the board about how the money is being spent.

Part of it is going toward a transition coach, working with pre-K families at Atkinson, Anne Street and Cowan Road elementary schools. And a Pre-K Information Session, which will educate parents of children 4 years old or younger on the school system’s pre-K program, will take place at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Taylor Street Auditorium.

The grant also funds a pre-K literacy project that allows children to earn up to five books for their home library. The project stipulates that parents read at least 15 minutes to their child each day and then return projects the pre-K program provides, so that the child can discuss a certain book. For each project completed, the child gets to keep the book.

Another chunk of the grant money is going toward a literacy partnership between the pre-K program and the Flint River Regional Library on Memorial Drive. Aside from the introduction of Literacy Night at the library last Monday, $20,000 of the grant is being used for book purchases for the library’s permanent children’s book collection.

Melton pointed out that if the same grant is not available for the next school year, parts of the programs will still be sustainable.